


Surviving the Inevitable

by Bbllaanncchhee2110



Series: A Couple of Firsts [2]
Category: Good Girls (TV)
Genre: Angst, Established Relationship, F/M, Lots of Angst, Lots of tears, Smut
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-18
Updated: 2019-08-06
Packaged: 2019-09-22 08:44:15
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 33,986
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17056565
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bbllaanncchhee2110/pseuds/Bbllaanncchhee2110
Summary: Roughly seven years after the events of "A Couple of Firsts And a Second" the inevitable happens and Beth isn't the only one struggling to cope.This is a sequel to "A Couple of Firsts And a Second".





	1. One

**Author's Note:**

> This probably won't make sense if you haven't read "A Couple of Firsts" first.
> 
> With Christmas Holidays around the corner I feel confident that I have the time to start posting another multi-chaptered story and finish it.
> 
> Enjoy.

“Mum, please don’t cry,” Kenny says and she can practically hear him rolling his eyes.

“I’m sorry, sweetie! It’s just… I just,” she sobs into the phone. ”I miss you so much!”

“I haven’t even been gone that long,” he tries to reason with her. 

“I know. I know,” she sniffles and grabs for a tissue, blowing her nose loudly. “Okay,” she continues, “tell me all about college!” She squares her shoulders and tries to swallow her sobs, even though the tears keep rolling down her cheeks. Kenny has been off to college for two months now and even though she couldn’t be more proud of her little boy, she still misses him desperately. 

“It’s great, mum! The parties are wicked,” he enthuses and Beth giggles through her tears. 

“I hope that is not all that’s great about college,” she says.

“I can do whatever I want, whenever I want it. It’s so cool,” he answers.

“How are classes?”

“Interesting, but hard,” he says.

“Are you studying a lot, honey?” she asks.

“As a matter of fact, I’m about to meet some friends to study.” She knows that he wants to end the call. She would have loved to hear his voice for just a few seconds longer, but she doesn’t want to keep him either.

“Don’t drink too much, love,” she says as a manner of ending the conversation.

“I won’t, I promise! Bye mum,” he says excitedly. She wants to answer, tell him that she loves him that she misses him, but he has already hung up. 

She grabs another tissue and sobs into it. It is hard to see her children grow up. Jane has only got one year of high school left. She is in love for the first time with a boy named Marcus whom Beth doesn’t hate – entirely. Danny has made the football team and even though he doesn’t lead on, she knows that he wants her to come to all of his games. With her eldest three approaching independence quickly, she is glad for Emma and Mary. Even though Emma claims that she is too old for them, she still participates in regular Princess Tea Parties for Mary’s sake. Never before has Beth been so aware of how fast time goes by and never has she been more grateful for each and every one of these tea parties for she knows that in the not too distant future there won’t be any more of them. She cries a lot these days. Mostly when she is by herself, but Rio has caught her in the bathroom once or twice.

***

When she saw the doorknob turning she scrambled up from the floor and took a quick glance in the mirror in order to fix herself up, before he entered. She was a mess and all hopes of deceiving him as to why she was in here and not in the shower even though the water was running were in vain. 

“You okay, mamma?” he asked softly and closed the door behind himself as he stepped into the room. She sat down on the closed lid of the toilet and slumped a little. He didn’t even glance at the shower as he made his way to her.

“I’m sorry about the water bill,” she mumbled remembering a similar situation years back. Her voice sounded nasal and slightly broken from crying.

“I don’t give a rat’s ass about the fucking water bill,” he said and even though the words were harsh his tone was anything but as he walked over to her and crouched before her. His hands came up to her face and he brushed away the tears with his thumbs.

“What is going on, sweetheart?” he whispered softly and gently forced her head upwards by placing one finger beneath her chin, so he could look into her eyes. The moment her eyes set on his, the tears started to fall again immediately. He kissed them away and pulled her close. She nestled her head into the crook of his neck and when his arms closed around her she couldn’t hold the sobs in any longer.

“It’s hard seeing them grow up, isn’t it?” he murmured against her hair, but she couldn’t answer. She just nodded her head and even though he couldn’t see her, he felt the movement. Moving to her side slightly, one arm still around her back, the other one making its way underneath her legs, he lifted her up. 

He carried her to the bedroom and crawled underneath the covers with her, pulling her close to him and letting her sob until she ran out of tears. It took her a while to calm down, but eventually the tears dried on her face and the soft hiccups faded until her breathing evened out. 

She suspected that he had fallen asleep as his hands that had been playing with her hair for at least twenty minutes had been motionless for a while now. She jumped a little and the breath caught in her throat when she suddenly heard his voice.

“You know, I could always make you a fresh one,” he drawled quietly and shifted a fraction behind her, only to press his erection against her and even as a potent wave of arousal crashed through her body she couldn’t help but snort.

“Menopause, honey. It’s neither possible nor advisable,” she practically purred as he started kissing her neck. She turned towards him and kissed his mouth, trailing her tongue along his bottom lip, drawing a contented moan from him. 

“Oh, it’s possible,” he assured her, smirking against her lips, before he continued, “And anyway, I need a son to follow in my footsteps.”

“I love you, Rio, but I’d rather not have any of my children follow in your footsteps,” she answered smirking back at him. He grabbed her ass tightly, pulled her towards himself and thrust against her, wiping the smirk right off her face.

“Think about it,” he whispered and leaned in for another kiss. “Meanwhile, I’m gonna show you how it’s done.” His hands became more insistent then, undressing her, touching every inch of skin they could reach. He kissed her hungrily, biting her lower lip, making her moan and writhe against him. His left hand traveled down her body, into her pants and he dipped two fingers between her lips, circling her entrance and then entering her. She gasped, eyes drifting shut and her head falling onto the pillow. 

He moved between her spread thighs quickly, pulling his shirt off and her hands flew to his toned chest, exploring every familiar inch of his body. Her fingers trailed down his chest and into his open trousers, curling around his hard cock, stroking him slowly.

“Hands off,” she whispered, guiding him towards her entrance. He complied with a breathy chuckle, giving her clit one last wicked flick with his thumb, then tearing her pants down. “Aren’t we eager tonight?”

“Shut up,” she snapped and he entered her. Her eyes immediately rolled back and a long, contended moan escaped her throat as her back arched and she writhed against him. He started to kiss her again and began to move inside her.

“I can’t believe that I have been fucking that sweet pussy of yours for almost seven years,” he murmured into her ear, then trailed kisses along her jaw.

“Getting tired of it?” she asked breathlessly.

“Nah, never,” he answered and then he flipped them over, so that he was lying on his back and she was on top of him.

“What are you doing?” Her head was spinning.

“We both know that missionary isn’t how babies are made,” he growled, emphasizing each word with a thrust upwards. Beth gasped out at each and every one of them. 

“Oh god,” she groaned, slowly circling her hips. “Just because Mary was conceived in this position doesn’t mean it is the only way and we’re not making a baby!” He moved his hand to her core, stroking her clit, as she fucked herself on his hard cock and he thrust simultaneously into her.

“It’s okay if you tell yourself that,” he said with a mischievous glint in his eyes. She was getting annoyed, but at the same time she could feel that she was getting close. And as waves of pleasure washed through her and her heart rate accelerated, it became almost impossible to carry on the conversation as she was nearing incoherency. 

“No, I can’t… oh god… I’m on birth control,” she sobbed. He moved his other hand to her breast and rolled her lush nipple between his thumb and index finger.

“We’ll see,” he ground out and sent her over the edge with one last viscous flick of his thumb and followed her suit. She slumped forward into his arms, desperate to catch her breath. He wrapped his arms around her tightly and murmured incomprehensibly into her ear as he so often did when they lay together in post-orgasmic bliss. 

When her senses returned, she moved off him and whispered, “We will!” She dropped a kiss on his cheek and got up from the bed.

“Where are you going?” he called after her as she made to open the bedroom door.

“To turn off the water,” she replied and left the bedroom, just to return a few moments later and snuggle up to her man, now in a much better mood.

***

Suddenly, the front door bursts open and the sound of heavy steps reverberates through the house. Beth’s head snaps up and she sees Carlos approaching her with wild eyes. She immediately knows that something is seriously wrong and her heart starts pounding in her chest. She staggers to her feet, the phone slips from her hand and clatters to the floor, but she doesn’t even notice.

“Rio,” she breathes and her knees wobble. Carlos is by her side in an instant and he grabs her shoulders in order to steady her. He guides her to a chair and says, “Have you talked to Eddie already?” She shakes her head.

“The TV then?” Another shake of her head. “How do you know then?”

“Know what?” she answers, looking up at him confused. He opens his mouth as if to answer, but seems to think better of it. Instead, he walks to the liquor cabinet – there is an official liquor cabinet now – takes the bourbon out and pours her a glass. He shoves the glass into her hand and waits for her to take a sip.

She swallows the amber liquid and the burn stops the spinning in her head. After almost seven years she has let herself believe that they are safe. That nothing is going to happen to them. Rio’s warning that eventually something would happen to him has moved to the back of her mind. Even though a rational part of her brain has always known that something could happen she has let herself believe that he would be the exception, the one gang leader that wouldn’t get killed, shot or taken in. She feels numb, can barely feel her hands and feet, breathing is suddenly hard work, blackness threatens to creep in from the edges, threatening to floor her at any minute. He can’t be dead. He can’t…

“What…?” she cannot finish the sentence. Her tongue feels heavy and to large in her mouth.

“Something went wrong,” he says and bows his head avoiding her gaze. The glass slips from her hand and shatters on the floor and just like the glass she can feel herself sliding of the chair, but Carlos catches her. He seems to realize his mistake when he suddenly speaks.

“He isn’t hurt!” he blurts out and picks her up, just like Rio does, or did, as if she weighed nothing. He carries her to the sofa where she cannot hurt herself, should she really pass out.

“The Feds have him,” he says. She blinks at him, unable to understand what exactly that means. 

“We don’t know yet,” he answers her unspoken question. “I wanted to come here first to tell you. I have to meet up with some people in half an hour to discuss what exactly is going on and how we can fix it.” She abruptly stands, still swaying, and walks to the hall to put her coat on.

“I’m going with you,” she says resolutely.

“No,” he answers.

“This is my man you’re talking about! I will go with you!” she snaps at him. The fury that floods her system drives the last remnants of dizziness away and she almost feels like a human being again. Miserable, but human none the less.

“Beth,” he says softly. His tone is a testament of how close they have gotten over the years. There is no anger there, just understanding and genuine concern. “Don’t you want to tell the kids?”

The kids! She has to hold onto the coat hanger to remain upright. In the age of smartphones, it can only take so long for Kenny, Jane and Danny to find out, but Emma isn’t allowed to take her phone to school and Mary doesn’t have one yet. She needs to break the news to them before they come home and switch on the TV. Judging from what Carlos has said so far, Rio’s arrest has already made the news after all. She looks at the expensive rose gold watch that Rio has bought her last year. In about twenty minutes the girls will be home. That leaves her enough time to call the older three. She might still be able to reach them before they see the news. That is when her phone rings.

She looks at Carlos. “Okay, I will stay here and tell the kids! But I want an update as soon as possible and I want to know every detail of what has happened!” He nods curtly and quickly makes his exit. Meanwhile, she crosses the living room swiftly, into the kitchen and picks up her phone from the floor.


	2. Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The day drags on...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the wait.
> 
> (I have added the last few lines of the first chapter, so you know where we're at.)

_She looks at Carlos. “Okay, I will stay here and tell the kids! But I want an update as soon as possible and I want to know every detail of what has happened!” He nods curtly and quickly makes his exit. Meanwhile, she crosses the living room swiftly, into the kitchen and picks up her phone from the floor._

It’s Kenny.

“Mum?” he blurts into the speaker as soon as she picks up. 

“Hi, baby,” she says, trying to sound reassuring.

“I just saw the news. Rio…” he breaks off.

“I know. Carlos was just here to tell me. Don’t be concerned, baby, I’m sure everything is going to be fine.” She just hopes that she isn’t lying. 

“Are you okay?” Her heart lurches and she has to swallow a sob. Her sweet boy is concerned for her.

“I’m going to be,” she says, “don’t worry about me, okay?”

“But mum…!?”

“No, sweetie! Everything is going to be fine, I’m sure. Don’t worry about us. I will let you know as soon as I hear anything. You have to focus on your school work!” She knows it’s a lot to ask, especially of a kid as sensitive and caring as her eldest son. 

“Promise you’ll call,” he says.

“I promise!”

“Tonight!”

“Yes, tonight.” They talk for another minute and then they hang up. She knows Kenny well enough to know that he will not distract himself, but sit in front of the TV and try to gather as much information as he can. She is sure that there is no worse source though. She remembers the news coverage from seven years ago when she had been the one to get Rio arrested.

She proceeds to call Jane and Danny and tells them not to check the news but come straight home instead. She doesn’t want to tell them over the phone, but is sure that if she doesn’t they will check immediately after hanging up. So, she tells them and it is all she can do to stifle the sobs that threaten to escape her throat. How is she supposed to do this when she can barely keep it together? When she has talked to her three eldest children she has about ten minutes left to get a grip on herself until the two youngest come home. She is glad that they have picked a house within walking distance of their children’s schools, because that means she can have another bourbon now. 

She gets herself a fresh glass and pours herself a healthy amount of amber liquid. She leans against the cool marble counter top of the kitchen island and focusses on her breathing. In and out. Then she quickly downs her drink and gets the broom to clean up the remnants of her last glass. When she is finished she walks into the downstairs bathroom and makes herself look presentable for when the kids come home. 

The sound of a key turning in the lock of the front door makes her leave the bathroom in order to welcome her two girls home. 

“Heeey you guys,” she practically sings when the two of them bounce into view. Mary wraps her arms around her legs and looks up at her.

“I’ve missed you, mummy,” she squeals, her dark eyes glistening and her mouth pulled into a crooked smile. She still looks very much like her father, the dark hair and eyes, the crooked smile, but she has Beth’s porcelain skin and her chin dimple. Beth bends down and kisses her head. 

“And I’ve missed you, little one,” she whispers, before she frees herself from her daughter’s grip to give Emma her hug. 

“You hungry?” Both of them nod vigorously and Beth hurries to heat up the lunch that she has prepared the evening before. The girls chatter away about what seems to have been an ordinary day. It pains her that she will have to destroy that in a few minutes. 

When they have finished their meal, she takes their plates, rinses them underneath the faucet and puts them away into the dishwasher. Emma tells her how she and Matteo have received an A for their science project, that was basically completed in hours and hours of meticulous work by Rio and Carlos with very little help from the children who were actually supposed to do it. A wave of love washes through her at the thought of her perfect family. If only the majority of the adults weren’t involved in organized crime everything would have been perfect. If only Rio had gone legit when he expressed the thought after holding his daughter for the first time. But Beth had been the one to tell him not to give up a piece of himself. She had been so sure that they could survive anything, that love would be enough. Surely no one would be stupid enough to mess with her man and up until today no one has tried. She blinks back tears, because it wouldn’t do for her to fall apart in front of her children when she needed to be the strong one, when they needed to lean on her, when they were forced to deal with something they were much too young for. 

“Let’s go into the living room, mummy has to talk to you,” she says and immediately the smiles drop of their little faces. She isn’t good at hiding her feelings when it comes to Rio. It is the same for him. What they share is so strong and so close to the surface that it cannot be hidden away. 

The girls sit on the sofa and Beth kneels in front of them, taking one of each their little hands in hers. “It’s about daddy,” she says. “Rio,” she clarifies for Emma. Mary’s bottom lip begins to quiver almost immediately and Emma releases a breath that comes out in a whoosh as she slumps against the backrest.

For a second, she contemplates making up a story. She could tell them that Rio is just out of town for a while, at least until she knows more. But she dismisses the thought. She cannot shield them from the outside world. They would find out soon enough and she’d rather they find out from her.

“First of all, I want you to know that your father is fine,” she talks to Mary foremost, but squeezes Emma’s hand to let her know that the words are meant for her just as much even when Rio isn’t her father. He has taken on the role without a second thought almost seven years ago with all the perks and struggles that parenthood brings and not even once has he been anything but loving and supportive. His relationship with Emma has been especially close from the beginning and became even more so when Dean married his child secretary and started a new family. Beth can’t blame him, she is the one who ended up pregnant first, but it was much easier to integrate Rio and Mary into their lives than seeing their father start a whole new family that remains till this day somewhat separate from them. They visit, they love the twins, but there is something about the routine of daily life that makes people into family. 

“You need to know that your father loves you very much, both of you,” she continues and squeezes their hands again. “I don’t know what has happened, yet, but earlier today he was arrested,” she finishes lamely. She doesn’t know what else to say, she doesn’t have a lot of information to go on after all. 

Silent tears stream down Emma’s face while Mary gets up and walks into the kitchen.

“What are you doing, honey?” Beth calls after her. She makes to stand and kisses Emma on top of her head before following her little one.

“I’m getting the magic phone,” she answers matter-of-factly. Beth’s heart lurches in her chest. Mary is talking about the burner phone stored away in a kitchen drawer that they keep charged at all times and that is only used for family emergencies. It has been Rio’s idea to get the phone as a means of contacting him when they really need him. Sometimes when he would be doing business, he wouldn’t be able to take their calls and it has taken one missed trip to the emergency room, Mary spiking a high fever, for him to realize that there are some calls he simply has to take. When he sees this number flashing on the display, he knows that no business deal could ever be more important than what is going on at home. Up until now Beth has only needed to use the phone twice. Both times one of the kids had gotten hurt and Rio had dropped everything to rush home. 

“That’s not going to work, baby,” she says in a gentle voice.

“Why not? It’s magic,” Mary says stubbornly.

“I’m so sorry, baby, it’s just not going to work.”

“But I want to call daddy!”

“I know!” Mary reaches the drawer and takes out the phone. “Put that down, baby, you can’t call him now. It’s not going to work.”

“But I want to call daddy!” she screams in a high-pitched voice.

“You can’t. I’m sorry,” Beth repeats, feeling broken, fighting back the tears. Mary cries out, flings the phone with as much strength as she can muster against the fridge and runs back into the living room, where she jumps unto the sofa next to Emma and proceeds to cry in her arms. 

Beth walks over to them and pulls them in her arms as she sits down on the sofa next to them. Mary cries with all the abandon of a six-year-old, but Beth knows that she will calm down eventually. It is Emma that worries her. Her little girl looks dejected and broken, she cannot handle another father figure being taken from her. 

They sit like that for a while. The girls have calmed down for a while and Mary is beginning to nod off, when another key is turning in the lock. Beth lifts her head and a grateful sigh escapes her as she sees Annie making her way in. She has little baby Leo in her arms and Ava is trailing in behind her.

“Thank god, you’re here,” she says barely able to keep the sob in that is threatening to escape her throat. 

“I came as soon as I could,” her sister answers, looking at her with concerned eyes. “Are you okay?” Beth shakes her head the tiniest fraction before she gets up and says in a cheery tone, “How about a movie and some sweets?” The normal squeal that a question like that would elicit from her children doesn’t sound. Still both of them nod and Ava quickly makes her way to the sofa to sit next to her cousins. Beth puts on the movie, muting the television and making sure to block the children’s view of the TV to shield them from any glimpse they might catch of their father’s face splattered all over the news. When the movie is safely running she turns the volume up and follows Annie into the kitchen. There she gets out the candy that she has already bought for Halloween and fills a bowl which she brings into the living room.

When she returns to the kitchen, Annie has poured her another bourbon and she is beyond thankful. She drains it in one gulp, before she refills it again. She doesn’t make a habit out of drinking during the day, especially not when the kids are present, but surely no one can blame her today.

“What do you know?” Beth asks.

“Only what I gathered from the TV so for,” Annie answers.

“I haven’t been able to watch the news yet.”

“Okay, so Eddie came by a couple of hours ago and told me that Rio has been arrested. He had to leave straight away to get on that and with Ava in kindy I didn’t have much else to do but watch the news. It doesn’t look good, Beth. Apparently, they have a witness and they are charging him with all kinds of things. Even murder,” Annie quickly tells her all she knows.

“Oh god,” Beth groans. “How are we supposed to survive this?” She buries her head in her hands, fighting to keep her composure.

“Your family has got you, love,” Annie whispers and rubs soothing circles on her back. When she says family, Beth knows that she means her children as much as herself and all of Rio’s boys. It helps a little to know that she won’t be alone, but nothing could ever replace Rio.

The afternoon drags on. Jane and Danny trail in looking just as dejected as Emma did before. They talk a little but they soon go to their rooms and stay there. Although, they have never discussed it too openly, they have drawn their conclusions about Rio’s business. He isn’t exactly subtle about it and neither are his boys with their tattoos, swanky guns and cars and their general gangster attire. They have accepted Rio for what he is, just like Beth has, especially after they’ve found out that he is involved in some kind of white-collar crime without any real victims. They don’t ask too many questions, knowing that he doesn’t like lying to them. They appreciate him for the person he is, for taking them on after their father has screwed up so royally, for caring for them the only way he knew how.

When it is finally time to put the children to bed, Beth is glad to see that Annie has packed to stay the night. They settle on the couch and for a second, she thinks about turning on the TV but decides against it. She is sure that Annie has told her everything worth knowing. She will face the media tomorrow. 

She is glad when the front door opens again, because this can only be one of the boys and sure enough Eddie and Carlos step into the living room. She stands up from the sofa and allows Carlos to wrap her in a tight hug and for the first time she lets the tears fall and cries with abandon. 

Eddie steps around them, walks towards his wife and kisses her briefly, whispering “I love you.”, before taking Leo from her and cuddling up with him in one of the armchairs. When Carlos and Beth join them again, Eddie is gazing at his sleeping son with nothing but love in his eyes. Sometimes it takes these kinds of situations to understand how truly blessed you are. Beth has to avert her gaze because she can still remember Rio holding Mary in a similar way. 

“When this is over, I’m going legit,” Eddie says, “I don’t care if that means graveyard shift at the diner.” Carlos snorts, but nods his head.

“What do you know?” Beth asks after they have stayed silent for a while.

“They’re charging him with a whole lot of crap, even stuff he hasn’t done,” Carlos answers. 

“I figured.” She knows that her man is far from innocent, but as far as she knows there has only been one murder in the last seven years and that one wasn’t on Rio. She looks at Eddie and raises a questioning eyebrow as if to ask if it is this murder that Rio is accused of. He shakes his head but averts his gaze guiltily. 

“Who’s the witness?” She can see the boys squirming at her question and knows that she isn’t going to like the answer. “It’s one of the wives, isn’t it?” Carlos nods his head, bracing himself for the storm that is going to come down on him any second now.

“Jesus fucking Christ, you utter morons. I have told you time and time again to take care of the wives! What did you expect to happen? You could have gotten their husbands out, at least one or two of them!” Carlos buries his face in his hands. It is true, she has told them a million times that they needed to take care of the wives. That if they couldn’t get their husbands out, they had to at least make sure that they live a comfortable life. They know too much and who is keeping them from snitching when they still live in poverty and she is living in the grant new house happily ever after with their husbands’ boss and her children? She gets up and starts pacing between the coffee table and the TV.

“What do you expect of them, when the Feds are constantly nagging them for details? When they can barely make ends meet and the person who has gotten them into this lives this great carefree life?” She air quotes the last words. Carlos’s head shoot up and he looks her into the eyes.

“And who do we have to thank for all that?” he snaps, raising one eyebrow. He is right, of course, but having her screw-up thrown into her face in a situation such as this one still hurts like a bitch. Her face contorts in the pain that Carlos’s question has caused her, but she pulls herself together and presses on.

“Just once, I wish you could shove your stupid chauvinistic ideas where they belong and accept that I have screwed up once – only this one time – and give me a little credit. But I’m just stupid Beth, aren’t I?” She glares at them. Annie gets up and fetches her sister another bourbon, knowing full well that it will calm her down.  
A couple of minutes later, the bourbon downed, Beth stops pacing and fixes Carlos with an icy glare. “When can I see him?” He raises an eyebrow and glares back, there is only so much yelling that he is willing to take, before he counterstrikes. 

“You can’t,” he says flatly.

“Excuse me?”

“Well, sweetheart, for all the times you call him your man and for all the smart advice that you have been dishing out, you neglected to take our advice to fucking get married,” he snaps.

“What has that got to do with anything?” she splutters genuinely surprised. What does their relationship status have got to do with any of this? It is true, they have talked about it and Carlos and Eddie have teased them about neglecting to tie the knot. Especially, after Beth had sobbed spectacularly at Annie and Eddie’s wedding. But Beth had told Rio that she doesn’t need a piece of paper to tell her that they belong together, that said piece of paper hadn’t stopped her last husband from cheating and that she would much rather keep their relationship the way it is. She had overruled all his objections on what was going to happen if anything should ever happen to either of them, so sure had she been that they were invincible.

“Turner will let no one but his lawyer and family visit him,” Carlos says, “He claims that Rio might try to keep his business running from jail.” A breath leaves Beth in a rush and she sways slightly.

“He wants to hurt him – us,” she whispers. Carlos nods grimly. It takes her a couple of minutes before she speaks again in an almost cheerful tone.

“Well, it’s a good thing that we got married last week then, isn’t it?” she quips.

“Have you?” Eddie asks bewildered. 

“No, but the Canadian marriage certificate, that Big Mike is going to forge for us, will say so and there is no way Turner can overrule that,” she says triumphantly. Carlos scratches his head, lost in thought.

“That might actually work,” he mutters after a few minutes and then proceeds to take his phone out to set everything in motion. They sit in silence while Carlos goes to the kitchen and calls Mike. Beth can hear him talking insistently but she cannot make out the words. She is exhausted and finds herself questioning how she is going to survive the next day. But it could have been worse, he could have been injured, they could have shot him, killed him. She has told him that they would be able to survive his eventual arrest and she is hell bend on proving that she meant it.

“Do you have anything on the witness?” Beth asks Eddie. He looks up confused, apparently, he has been lost in thought looking at Leo. It takes him a few seconds to answer.

“It’s Luciana. She and her kids are in witness protection,” he says.

“And you have no idea where she is.” Although it is meant as a question it comes out a statement of facts. A defeated sigh leaves her throat and her hands come up to her face, to rub her eyes.

“Don’t worry, Beth,” he answers, “we’re going to know where they keep her soon enough. Rio won’t stay in there forever. And in the meantime, you will be able to visit him soon.”

“It’s just…” she breaks off, her throat is getting tight again. “It kills me to know that he is in there.” A tear escapes and rolls down her cheek, she brushes it away with the back of her hand but soon more tears follow and she is pulled into Annie’s arms. She rests her head in her sister’s lap and it doesn’t take long for her eyes to drift shut.

***

It is night when she awakens again and someone has carried her to bed. Annie sits at the edge of the bed, feeding Leo.

“I’m sorry. Did I wake you?” she whispers. Beth shakes her head and regards her sister. Despite everything that has happened today a smile spreads across her face.  
“You look happy,” Beth says. Annie shoots her a guilty look.

“I am,” she answers. And even in the moonlight, Beth can see a faint blush spreading across her cheeks. “Are you…,” she breaks off when she realizes her mistake, because Beth certainly can’t be happy right now, and fumbles for words, “… okay?”

“I will be.” And at that moment she knows it’s true. She leans back into her pillow and closes her eyes. The perfect little suckling noises that Leo makes sooth her and she can feel sleep pulling her in.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always I am happy to receive kudos and comments, because they make me so happy <3 <3 <3


	3. Three

When her alarm goes off the next morning, she feels like a zombie, more dead than alive. She goes through her morning routine numb and exhausted. When she wakes the kids, they seem to feel similarly and beg her to be allowed to stay home, but she has a feeling that they need to keep the pretenses up. She is sure that Turner’s little stunt of denying Rio visitation from his family is supposed to weaken all of them, Rio as well as the boys, as well as her and the children. He wants to apply pressure until someone else cracks and gives him more. It also tells her that Luciana can’t have all that much on Rio, because why would Turner turn to such measures when his case was a done deal? All the more, she feels that if they want to outplay him, they need to show strength and sadly that means that the children will have to attend school. 

That is also why she only gives herself thirty minutes of TV time, when the kids leave for school. She needs to know exactly what kind of lies the media spreads about her man in order to not be caught off guard. Afterwards, she begins to clean the house vigorously, because she needs to occupy her hands and the more strenuous the work gets the less she can think about Rio. Every once in a while, she checks the mirror, in case the police show up at her house. She doesn’t want them to think she is falling apart and that means she needs to look halfway put together.

Around 11 a.m. Carlos comes by again.

“Any news?” she asks as she puts a coffee mug in front of him. Carlos shakes his head and adds milk and sugar.

“We have contacted a couple of friends in order to get some info on Luciana’s whereabouts, but so far nothing has turned up,” he says. When he sees her dejected look he continues, “Don’t worry, Beth, something will turn up. Give it a couple of days.” But it’s hard to be patient when Rio is locked away.

“So, tell me what happened,” Beth says.

“We probably won’t know the whole story until he’s out again. He went to this drop alone, because it was fairly routine and the guys were long time business partners. According to what I have found out so far, they picked him up the moment he got out of the car and the others as well.”

“Did they set him up?” she interrupts, but Carlos just shakes his head.

“I don’t think so. But Luciana’s brother works with them, so I’m guessing that he let something slip and she tipped off the Feds.”

“You’re sure that he didn’t want to bring Rio down himself?”

“You can never be one hundred percent certain, but Eddie beat the crap out of him and he stuck with his story. And his boss is pretty pissed at him, too, because he has lost a big part of his business.”

“Why would Rio do a drop with another guy’s boys? I would have thought that he didn’t do ground work?” Something is off with this story. Rio is too high up the food chain to do minor drops.

“He doesn’t, usually, but he said, he had something to do in that part of town anyway,” Carlos explains.

“And what was that?”

“I don’t know, he wouldn’t say.”

“What the fuck is going on, Carlos? This whole story stinks to high heavens,” she huffs frustrated, while she rakes her hands through her hair. Carlos doesn’t answer, but nods again. “It’s not only the way he got arrested. It’s also how Turner is playing this.” She continues to tell Carlos her theory about Turner and they are silent for some time afterwards. 

“You know, that actually sounds plausible,” he says slowly putting the empty cup down, silently asking for a refill which she grants immediately.

“Don’t sound so surprised,” she snaps, but there is no real heat behind her words.

“That’s why you’re so put together today. I thought that you would be a mess. I guess, that is also why Annie isn’t here anymore?” She nods her head.

“I’ve kicked her out together with the kids and told her to go about her day as normally as possible. Told the kids the same thing,” she says sadly. “If any of us shows what this is taking out of us, I just know that Turner will find out somehow. Though I’m not sure what exactly he is going to do with the information.”

“He will probably try to pressure Rio into incriminating himself to make this easier on you,” he answers scratching his chin.

“Us,” Beth corrects him.

“Huh?”

“To make this easier on us. Not just me and the kids, but you as well. You’re family, Carlos.” He snorts dismissively, but she knows him well enough to notice the slight twitch of his lips that tells her that he is quite touched by her words. “Anyway,” she continues, “I need to do something. I’m going crazy here. I’ve already scrubbed half the house squeaky clean.”

“Hmm,” he grunts, looking off into the distance thinking, “Maybe you could pick up your work with the wives. Make sure that the other three aren’t snitching. You might have had a point about making them comfortable.” He gives her sheepish smile. “You already have groveled before them once, you will manage again and now you can blame everything on us men with our stupid chauvinistic ideas, or whatever you call it.” She doesn’t particularly like the idea of going back after she hasn’t been there for almost three years. But Carlos is right and just maybe she can gather some more information on Luciana. 

She nods. “Okay, I will go there later today.” He nods as well and makes to stand.

“I have to get going. There are a few people I have to meet up with.” He turns to leave, but just before he reaches the door he turns around again. 

“Oh, I almost forgot,” he says, reaching into the inside pocket of his jacket, producing a brown envelope, “Congratulations, Mrs Medina. I’m so glad you decided to finally make an honest man out of him.” His eyes twinkle with mirth, when he walks the few steps back to her and kisses her on the cheek. She blushes a little and just as he closes the door behind him, she opens the envelope and gazes at the fake marriage certificate. Her heart flutters in her chest and she presses the paper against it. She might have been reluctant to get married, but it sure as hell feels good to be his wife, especially in a situation such as this one.

***

Later that day Beth finds herself at Fine and Frugal shopping for the wives again just as if seven years haven’t gone by. This time, however, she is on her own, although Bullit has offered to accompany her. But she’s told him to go look for Luciana and bring her her man – nay husband back. Getting used to calling him that is going to take a while, but slipping is out of the question when Turner is only waiting for someone to make a mistake. 

Concentrating on the shopping is hard work. Her mind drifts off several times while she is inspecting the ingredients of one item or the other only to be shaken out of her musings by the odd other customer. An old lady bumps into her shopping cart accidentally and apologizes profusely only to tell her that she looks tired. You try being alone with five kids and a husband in jail, bitch, Beth is about to snap until she realizes that she has just referred to Rio as her husband in her head without stumbling over it. So, she just smiles at the offensive old hag and says, “Five kids will do that to you.”

She is glad to be out of the store half an hour later, although groveling in front of the wives doesn’t sound any more pleasant than shopping for them. Nevertheless, she gets into her old perforated mamma van and drives off of the parking lot. Rio has offered to buy her a new car several times, but she simply cannot part with it. Too many fond memories are linked to the car. It’s the car she drove Emma and Mary to their first day of school in, it’s the car that Eddie returned to meet his future wife, it’s the car that she made all these drops with and not to forget it is the car in which Rio made her come for the very first time. How could she ever get rid of it?

Her first stop is Camila’s house and when she has thought that their plan to suck up to the wives again is original in any way, she realizes that it is sadly lacking in ingenuity when the door opens before she has even climbed all the stairs to the porch. Apparently, Camila has expected her visit. She hurries outside and is by Beth’s side in an instant, taking the groceries from her. 

Beth has imagined a variety of different hostile welcomes, but not for a second has she thought that she would be met with this dramatically different attitude from Camila who is now doing all the groveling that she has been set on doing.  
“Hello Beth. Here let me help you. These look heavy,” Camila says breathlessly. Beth’s eyebrows lift into her hairline. Surprised by the unexpected reception, she stays silent for lack of anything to say and follows Camila into the house. 

“It’s so nice to have you, Beth. It has been so long since I have seen you and those beautiful children of yours,” Camila rambles. “Not that I expected to see you. You must have better things to do after all.” Beth feels like she is missing something. Camila acts as if Beth were some kind of high-ranking visitor when Beth feels that she has every right to be angry for being abandoned. The lack of sleep makes her patience for bullshit wear thin pretty quickly.

“Cut the crap, Camila,” Beth snaps and the other woman flinches violently. What does she expect from Beth? Does she think that she is going hurt her? And why would she? Camila hasn’t done anything, or has she? Suddenly suspicion rises inside her.

“What is going on?” she demands.

“Nothing, Beth! Nothing, I swear. I’ve had nothing to do with any of it!” Camila practically rambles and she brings a couple steps of space between the two of them. She is visibly shaking, tears threaten to spill from her eyes and she looks positively terrified. Beth holds a hand up to silence her and the reaction comes promptly. Well, Beth thinks, for all the belittling treatment she sometimes receives from the boys, the women seem to respect her. But she doesn’t have the time nor the patience to do anything with this realization.

“I believe you, Camila,” she says gently. “I actually came to apologize to you.” She gives Camila a confused smile.

“Apologize? For what?” Camila is taken aback, but her posture becomes less tense and the shaking ceases.

“I feel that we have been letting you down,” Beth says.

“Letting us down?” Camila asks, confusion written into her features.

“Your husbands are currently in jail, because I put them there. Surely the least we could have done, was to arrange for you to live a comfortable life,” she explains.

“Isn’t that what you have been doing?” Camila asks tentatively.

“Well, you tell me.”

“Rio has been paying me a little over what Sid made working for him. Who am I to complain when he didn’t have to give me anything?” She shrugs and starts to put the groceries away. She avoids Beth’s gaze, apparently uncomfortable talking about this with her.

“He was arrested, so Rio could walk free. Doesn’t that bother you?” Beth inquires.

“You said it yourself. It was bound to happen sooner or later. With Sid doing groundwork it meant sooner for him and with Rio at the top of the food chain it meant later. Like you, I knew exactly what kind of man I married,” she finishes sadly.

“We could have gotten him out,” Beth insists. 

“Do you think so?” Camila asks, eyebrows raised. The tension between them has dissipated. This is so not what Beth has expected to run into. 

“I don’t know,” Beth admits, “But I’ve always felt that we weren’t doing enough for you.” Camila chuckles softly.

“That’s because you feel guilty,” she says.

“Shouldn’t I?” Beth asks softly.

“I forgave you a long time ago, Beth. And so did the others.” She knows this, of course, although she suspects that Luciana probably hasn’t forgiven her after all, but it doesn’t lessen the guilt she feels. Turning Rio in together with every single consequence Rio’s friends and family had to suffer because of it is her one regret that she cannot let go. Even after all these years and after everything has turned out for the better. Well, not everything exactly. 

“But what about Luciana then?”

“I can’t really be sure, Luciana hasn’t talked to me much lately. But I think she’s had other problems for a long time. My guess is that she has been trying to squeeze more money out of Rio. It seems that she has gotten desperate,” Camila explains.

“But why?”

“When we were younger she struggled with a nasty drug habit. I guess she has gotten hooked again.”

“Does Rio know? Or anyone for that matter?” Beth asks surprised. She has never heard of anything that would have her suspect Luciana of doing drugs. Camila shrugs sadly.

“I would think he knows. He has probably refused to give her more money and that’s why she snitched.” Beth frowns. She cannot help but feel responsible for that too. She doesn’t have a lot of experiences with drugs or addicts, but it must have been the strain of being a single mother struggling to get by, that has driven Luciana back to it. 

“But the Feds wouldn’t help her with that either, would they?” This whole situation doesn’t make any sense. No matter from which angle she looks at it, she cannot understand Luciana.

“My guess is that they threatened to go after her kids,” Camila says. Now comprehension dawns on her. It makes sense that Luciana would be willing to snitch. After all Beth had done the very same thing when she felt threatened. Still she cannot help but ask herself, why no one has bothered to tell her any of this. 

“What is going to happen to her,” Camila asks anxiously. 

“Nothing,” Beth answers without hesitation. “As soon as Rio is out I’m going to have a word with him about how he handled the situation. I’m not pleased. At least one or two of your husbands should have been out by now. I can’t believe that he has neglected you like this.”

“Sid only has about a year left, so don’t get into a fight with Rio on my account,” Camila says quickly, apparently afraid of Rio. Beth snorts and lifts one eyebrow in challenge.

“I’m not afraid of him. Just tell me what you need, I’ll squeeze it out of him,” she drawls with a lopsided smile. Camila giggles shyly, still very much uncomfortable with the offered support.

“No, really! Don’t bother with us,” she says and then continues to say, “Just…” but she breaks off, uncertain if her request is appropriate.

“Just? Common, you can tell me,” Beth prods.

“Maybe Rio could employ Sid in one of his legitimate businesses when he’s out? I wouldn’t want to go eight years without him again.” Camila blushes furiously and avoids Beth’s gaze. Beth lays one hand on the other woman’s shoulder and squeezes lightly.

“Of course, Camila. That is the least he can do for you.”

They keep chatting for a while longer, but avoid the topic of their husband’s arrests. When Beth makes to leave, the sun has begun to set. She hugs Camila at the door and is about to open it, when she spots Agent Turner walking up to the house. She has, of course, expected to see him quite soon, but the sight of him still rattles her nastily. 

“Don’t panic, Beth,” comes Camila’s voice from behind her. “I won’t say a word and neither will the others!” She opens the door and steps outside opting to act as if she hasn’t seen Turner.

“Emma will be so excited to visit you guys,” she tattles pleasantly as if the two of them have been wrapped up in conversation. Thankfully Camila answers without batting an eye.

“Oh yes, Georgi has been asking for her for ages. Thank you for the pleasant visit, Beth.” Beth turns around and nearly bumps into Turner. She doesn’t have to act surprised, because even though she might have already seen him, she hasn’t expected him to be this close already. She lets out a surprised little yelp, that hopefully doesn’t seem to suspicious and says, “Agent Turner, I didn’t expect to run into you here.”

“I could say the same thing,” he answers smoothly. 

“Obviously. Why would an excellent Agent like yourself concern himself with a cookie-cutter housewife’s social life?” she says pleasantly giving him an innocent smile.

“Well, it’s not that beside the point, when it is your boyfriend that I am currently trying to hold accountable for his criminal activities, Ms Marks,” he answers just as pleasantly. Beth knows that he is trying to get a rise out of her, but she also knows that currently she has the higher ground for she holds information that is new to him. She can see that it irks him when she doesn’t bat an eye at his blatant dig towards Rio. Not willing to give him the satisfaction of seeing how much she is suffering and feeling giddy with anticipation at the same time, she decides not the forego the dropping of the bomb. She flicks her reddish blonde mane back and opts for her sweetest smile.

“You know as well as I do, that you won’t be able to uphold any of the heinous charges that you made up against my husband. And it is Mrs Medina now. Please do try to keep up.” She turns on her heel then and walks to the car swiftly. 

Once in the car she has to stop herself from speeding off. Instead she makes a show of checking her make-up in the mirror, while actually risking a side-glance at Turner who is still looking after her. She puts on her seatbelt slowly, starts the car and fiddles with the radio for a few seconds, before she puts it in Drive and slowly rolls off. 

A couple of streets further, however, she turns into a small alley and scrambles out of the car. She quickly hides behind a dumpster and is violently sick. It takes her a couple of minutes to calm down again and even then, she doesn’t feel fit to drive. So, she sends Eddie her position and tells him to send someone. 

Within 15 minutes a black Cadillac pulls up next to her.

“What’s going on,” Carlos asks anxiously.

“Nothing. Just threw up my lunch and didn’t feel like driving,” she answers and gets into the car.

“You pregnant?” he asks with a raised eyebrow. 

“Hell no!” she says, but he just raises his eyebrow a little higher, clearly not believing a word she says. “No, really! I ran into Turner,” she says.

“And he made you puke?” Carlos asks incredulously.

“Kind of. Do you remember when we started watching Grey’s Anatomy together when you looked out for me when I was pregnant with Mary?” He nods and sets the car in drive. “It was this kind of puking.”

“Oh, you mean the way that ‘Pick me, choose me, love me’-crap made me almost puke into the flower pots?” he asks chuckling as he steers the car out of the alley and she knows that he is making fun of her. But as the laughter bubbles out of her, she is grateful to him, because for just a second the weight lifts off her shoulders. She shoves him playfully and then says, “No, stupid! I mean the very first episode when she pukes after she resuscitates her first patient.”

“Oh,” he says, comprehension dawning, “Did Turner need mouth to mouth?” She snorts. 

“No,” she answers, shoving him again, “But I told him that Rio and I got married and that he should at least try to keep up.” It’s his turn to snort. 

“Sounds like a tense situation.”

“Hence the puking.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I had to come up with a last name for Rio and went with Medina, because I'm in the middle of my annual reviewing of Gilmore Girls and Max is just a nice guy, who deserved more than he got from Lorelai.
> 
> I know there is not a lot of Rio in this story so far, that is why the next chapter is going to have at least one flashback, so that hopefully no one goes into withdrawal :D
> 
> And just as always am I happy to receive comments and kudos. They make my days so much brighter and motivate me to keep this going.


	4. Four

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Beth has the worst possible week.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 4 has officially doubled the total word count, so this is a long one.
> 
> There is finally a little Brio time in this one. I hope you'll enjoy.

Thursday and Friday go by uneventfully with the kids in school and Beth reinstating her relations with the wives. Having something to do makes Beth feel better. It gives her a sense of purpose, like she is doing something to resolve the situation. She knows, of course, that Carlos, Eddie and the others are doing the actual work. She hasn’t been in on Rio’s business for a long time and, therefore, is of no use. She sure has begged him to let her in again, but he wouldn’t have it. In the beginning he didn’t trust her enough to let her be any part of the business, but as they grew closer, as they became a family he didn’t want her in because one of them had to stay out of it in case anything ever happened to the other. It made sense, so Beth eventually stopped arguing with him. It still irked her and it remains to irk her until this day, that she depends on him. But he isn’t Dean and she knows it. He is different in so many ways, especially in the way he seems to love her more with every passing day.

The kids understandably take Rio’s arrest badly. Only Mary forgets for hours at a time. The thoughtlessness of young age can be a blessing. But she never forgets for long and when it is bedtime at the latest the tears start falling again and then it is worse than with the other kids. It is as if she learns the news every day anew and she learns them kicking and screaming. The other children never forget which is a curse all of its own. It is hard to see her babies this defeated. They barely talk, they barely eat and she barely sees them because they stick to their rooms. When the weekend comes around the tension becomes almost unbearable. But there is nothing Beth can do, except to go from room to room and try and talk to them.

When Monday comes by again, Beth is almost relieved to have them out of the house. And she feels foul for even thinking it. Over the weekend she hasn’t had one second to herself, not one second to deal with her own pain, because she worried about them. It is the way mothers are wired to care about their children first and about themselves second and she wouldn’t have it any other way. But she is relieved to finally let the tears fall when Emma and Mary close the door behind themselves on their way to school.

Little does she know that the new week is going to be even more strenuous than the last. And she isn’t eased into either. After a quiet first half of the day, consisting of a good thirty-minute cry in the shower, some grocery shopping and a visit to Camila which leave her drained, Danny barges into the house, slamming the door behind him and running upstairs immediately. 

When she hears the key turn in the front lock she makes her way to greet him, but he rushes past her. She decides to give him a moment and goes into the kitchen to prepare him a sandwich. She cuts off the crusts which she wouldn’t normally do, but he needs to be cut some slack and even if it is only in the form of a crust-less sandwich. She makes her way upstairs and knocks at his door. He doesn’t answer. She knocks again and waits a few seconds before she enters the room. 

“Hey honey, I’ve made you a sandwich,” she says, trying for a soothing, motherly voice, but it comes out rough and scratchy. He just glares at her, as she makes her way to him where he lies on his bed and sets the plate down on his nightstand.

“I’m so sorry,” she whispers, not really knowing what to say to make him feel better, and sits down beside him. She reaches out one hand to touch him but he flinches back. It stings but she does her best not to show it. She doesn’t seem to manage though, because Danny just snorts.

“It’s alright, mum. You can drop the act,” he says viciously and the words cut through her like a knife. Her hand flies to her chest, where the pain is located, but she manages to hold the gasp in that threatens to escape.

“Act?” she croaks and he laughs a humorless laugh, not looking at her.

“Stop pretending that everything is going to be fine. It is not!” he snaps, looking her in the eyes for a second, before he averts his gaze again.

“It is, honey,” she tries for a reassuring tone, both for him as well as for herself. “Uncle Eddie and Uncle Carlos are working on it.”

“Don’t call them that! And don’t treat me like a baby! I’m not! And they are not my nice uncles! They’re criminals. Just like Rio! And you brought them into our house,” he rants angrily. Beth scrambles of the bed and stumbles towards the door, blinded by unshed tears. She feels winded as if he had hit her with blows instead of just words. 

“You don’t mean that,” she splutters.

“None of this would have happened, if only you hadn’t kicked out dad,” he continues. All Beth can do now is shake her head over and over again.

“He wanted to stay with us. He wanted to continue being a family. But you kicked him out anyway, because you couldn’t wait to get Rio to live with us. That’s probably why you got pregnant so quickly, so he would stay.” She rubs her eyes and for a second, she can see him clearly through her tears. He doesn’t look at her, his head is bent to the side, but she can still see that he is crying as well. She turns on the spot and leaves his room. In the hall she bumps into Jane.

“Are you alright, mum?” she asks in a worried voice. In this moment Beth realizes that she has bottled up her feeling for too long and that the measly cry in the shower this morning hasn’t been enough. A sob escapes her against her will. Jane wraps her arms around her within a second. 

“Mum,” she whispers, “What is it?”

“Nothing! It’s nothing. I just need some time for myself. Would you look after the girls today? You can order in pizza,” she mumbles and staggers towards her bedroom.

She closes the door behind her and quickly closes the blinds. Then she walks over to the bed and for the first time since the news of Rio’s arrest she crawls into his side of the bed, fully clothed, and wraps herself in the blanket, breathing in his scent, crying pathetically. She can hear Jane and Danny fighting, but she cannot make out the words. They stop yelling at each other when the front door slams shut downstairs and Emma’s voice sounds through the house, “Hello? We’re home!” Danny’s door opens and closes again and then Beth can hear footsteps descending down the stairs. 

After that everything seems to settle down inside the house. She can hear the girls’ muffled voices, the TV, once the doorbell rings, probably the pizza delivery. She alternates between sleep and crying. But either way she cannot stop thinking. Thinking that Danny is right, that she has brought all this over her family and that all of it has been a mistake. Maybe she should have stayed with Dean. He is her babies’ father after all. Well, most of them anyway. None of this would have happened with Dean. Even if Danny was wrong about everything else, he isn’t wrong about this. Beth could have spared her children a lot of hurt if she had only stayed with Dean. She feels that as a mother her kids’ happiness should be most important to her. But Rio? That was only for her. She had been selfish to start something with him when she knew how he earned his money. To think what she had let slide in the past seven years, what kind of behaviors she just accepted. Boomer, to name but one example. How could she let murderers into her house? To live with her kids? Is she crazy? How could she have been this blind? How could she not have known that something like this was bound to happen? That her kids were bound to get hurt? 

The longer she thinks about this the surer she is that Danny is right about everything he has said. She should have stayed with Dean. Dean has never done anything to hurt her, except screw his child secretary. But surely there are always two people to blame for a failed marriage. She should have worked harder, should have fought for their relationship. Surely her kids would be happier now if she had only tried harder to work things out with Dean. He had told her time and time again that he wanted to stay with her, that he loved her. Hell, he had even faked cancer to keep her. But she had thrown away almost twenty years of marriage, because she had had a crush. To be fair, it was more than a crush. Because whatever it was, it still prevails, burning inside her just as strongly as it did the first time he kissed her, the first time he touched her, the first time he made love to her. If anything, it has gotten stronger over the years. 

The thought of letting Rio go, or of never having started anything with him, knocks the breath out of her. She cannot imagine herself without her love for Rio. It is such a big part of her that she is sure that even without knowing it could ever exist she couldn’t be whole. If she had stayed with Dean and she had never discovered her love for Rio and had never received his love in return, she still could never have been complete. Because, how could she? Without Rio she feels like she is missing a limb or a vital organ. 

And the thought of never having had Mary is just plain wrong. No matter how entitled Danny is to his hurt feelings and how right he is about some of the things he has said, he surely can’t wish for Mary to never have been born, can he? Danny is a teenager, he has taken out his anger and hurt feelings on her and she should stop feeling sorry for herself and accept it for what it is. Yes, he is angry. Yes, he is hurt. But that is in no small part due to the fact, that he loves Rio and that he misses him, too. And although he is right about the fact that he probably wouldn’t feel this bad right now, if Beth had stayed with Dean, they both know that given the chance he wouldn’t change anything. 

Time passes without her even noticing. It is only when the door opens that she is shaken out of her musings. She moves for the first time in what must have been hours, when she lifts her head to look at the intruder. 

It is Danny. His head hangs low, but she catches a glimpse if his face. Even in the dim room she can see that his eyes are red rimmed and puffy. He looks miserable. Her heart lurches at the sight of him. No matter how badly he has hurt her, it pains her even more to see him like that. He closes the door behind himself, but doesn’t step further into the room. They don’t talk for a while. He sniffles from time to time. When he takes a step towards her, she shifts a little, turning towards him.

“I’m sorry,” he whispers hoarsely.

“I know,” she whispers back, just as hoarsely. She lifts the blanket a little and says, “Scoot in.” He does as he is told and for the first time in years she is allowed to hold her youngest son in her arms as he cries for a while, before he eventually calms down.

“I’m sorry,” he says again.

“I know,” she answers again.

“I didn’t mean…,” he breaks off and they don’t speak for a while.

“It’s true though,” she says quietly. He turns around and looks at her. For the first time that day he looks at her without breaking eye-contact. His frown urges her to continue.

“What you said isn’t wrong. Except for the pregnancy part. I really didn’t plan that,” she says and huffs out a laugh. “But I did kick your dad out even though he still wanted to be part of this family. And I did fall in love with Rio and wanted him to move in with us, even though I knew what he does.” She reaches out for Danny and cups his face in one of her hands. This time he doesn’t flinch. Her thumb brushes across his eyebrow, smoothing it out. “I just hoped that you knew, that he is more than just a criminal.”

“I do,” he whispers and the pained look creeps back over his features.

“I didn’t think that anything like that would ever happen to us. I kind of thought we were invincible,” she continues. They are quiet for a while. They both turn to lie on their backs and stare at the ceiling. 

“I feel like shit,” he blurts and they both chuckle.

“I know. So do I.”

“You’re right about Rio. And Eddie and Carlos, for that matter,” he says. 

“I know.” There is a pause. “I know what they do. I dare say, I know more about it than you do. I know that most of what they say about him on TV isn’t true. Especially the part where they accuse him of murder. I also know who sat through every episode and then every movie of Star Trek and then dressed up with you and took you to four different Comic Cons, before you declared that Star Trek is for dorks and you needed to practice to get into the football team.” Danny hides his face in his hands and groans.

“I’m never going to live that down, am I?”

“You looked so cute with those ears on,” Beth coos. They both laugh quietly and after a few moments she pulls Danny close and kisses him on the cheek. They stay quiet then, both of them looking at the ceiling thinking about Rio and his place in the family. It takes a while before one of them speaks again.

“He went running with me every day until I made the team,” he whispers. Beth chooses not to say anything more on the topic. She knows that he feels bad about what he’s said. There is no need to make him suffer any more. 

“I’m hungry,” she says, “Is there anything left of the pizza?” She gets up from the bed and walks to the door. “We can watch a movie, if you like.”

“As long as it isn’t Star Trek,” he says and they both laugh.

When they sit on the sofa together a few minutes later, Beth is glad that they have worked out their conflict, but she feels drained none the less. Without Rio everything is just so much harder. But as Danny lies down on the sofa and puts his head in her lap, she knows that she can handle anything as long as she has her kids around. She doesn’t pay attention to the movie but instead focuses on running her fingers through Danny’s hair. Occurrences such as this one get rarer and rarer the older the children get, so she treasures them when they happen.

“I love you,” she whispers.

“But why, when I’m such a dick to you?” He turns to his back and looks up at her frowning. 

“You’re my baby,” she says, brushing a stray lock of hair away from his forehead. “I carried you inside for nine months. No matter what you do and how much of a dick you are to me or anyone I’m always going to love you.”

“Doesn’t sound healthy,” he grunts and Beth snorts. They are silent for a while and she resorts to her hair stroking. She has almost forgotten about their conversation, when Danny speaks again. It is only a whisper and it takes her a few seconds before she even registers that he has spoken and what he has said.

“I love you, too, mum.”

After a while the girls come down and join them on the sofa. Danny has to sit up and take his head out of her lap as all five of them squeeze onto the sofas that is only designed for three people. Danny reaches out for Mary and pulls her onto his lap while his head now rests on Beth’s shoulder. Beth decides to give him a couple of days before she will talk to him about it again. Clearly something has happened today that has made him lash out at her. 

About half way through their second movie, she hears a key turn in the front lock. She knows it can only be Annie or Carlos and doesn’t turn around. A large hand, she recognizes as Carlos’s lands on her shoulder and she lifts her head, making eye contact. She gives him a wan smile and his answering one is just as weak. He squeezes her shoulder lightly and nods towards the kitchen. Getting up from the sofa, she kisses Danny and Mary on the head and follows Carlos out of the living room.

“Everything okay?” she asks.

“Depends how you look at it,” he answers and rubs his face wearily. “I think we’re making progress on Luciana. We’ve gotten a few tips from an associate. We’ll see how that turns out.”

“But?” she prods. Carlos body language tells her that although they seem to be making progress not everything is running smoothly.

“I’ve talked to Aldrin. He says it’s going to take a while until you can see Rio. Apparently, Turner is doing everything he can to prevent you from visiting him.” Aldrin is Rio’s lawyer, the very same that got him out within 48 hours the last time he was arrested. 

“Can’t say I’m surprised,” she says. He shakes his head sadly.

“Neither am I.” She walks over to the fridge and grabs a bottle of beer for him. When she hands it over, he pulls her into a hug and kisses the top of her head. For a second her mind flashes back to when they first met and he had held his gun to her head. Had anyone told her back then that they would one day become family, she would have thought them mental. 

“You’re going to get through this,” he murmurs into her hair before letting her go. She walks back into the living room and Carlos trails in behind her choosing the other sofa in preference to squeezing in with the five of them. They silently watch the movie and after a few minutes Mary scrambles up and makes her way towards Carlos and snuggles up to him. He puts her arm around her without taking his eyes from the TV, but Beth catches him smiling faintly.

“You don’t have to be sad, Uncle Carlos,” Mary says, “Daddy is going to be back soon.” His head snaps around to her and he gives her a big smile.

“I know, sweety,” he says gently and kisses her on top of her head. Beth catches his eye and they share an amused look. 

Then they sit quietly until it is time for the girls to go to bed. Carlos offers to read Mary her story and when Beth closes the door to Emma’s room behind herself, she notices that her older two have retired to their rooms as well. She decides to pay Danny a visit and talk to him even though just hours before she wanted to wait for a few days. 

When she enters he is lying on his bed fully clothed, reading a magazine.

“Hi, sweety,” she says. He puts the magazine to the side and looks at her. She can see that he is still hurting from their earlier fight. 

“Are you still mad at me?” he asks tentatively.

“I was never mad at you, hun,” she answers, “I was hurt, though.” She could have lied or left that bit of information unsaid, but she figures that he knows anyway.

“I’m sorry,” he says. 

“I have already forgiven you.”

“Why do I still feel like shit then?” She snorts and the corners of his mouth twitch. She walks over to him and sits on the edge of the bed.

“Has something happened today?” she asks reaching out for him. He averts his gaze and doesn’t speak. She gives him a minute but when there are no signs that he is going to start talking she squeezes his arm gently and says, “Danny, you can tell me.”

“No, you’re going through enough as it is. You shouldn’t also be worrying about me.”

“I will always worry about you. I’m your mum. It’s part of my job.” She squeezes his arm again and he starts telling her how the other kids in school bully him for his stepfather’s arrest. What they say and what they do sounds dreadful and it kills her to know that there is absolutely nothing she can do about it. When he is finished telling her everything, she hugs him tight. 

“I’m so sorry you have to go through this,” she says. He just shrugs his shoulders.

“It is what it is.” They talk for a couple of minutes more, before she kisses him good night. Obviously, he is still feeling bad about taking his feelings out on her, because this is the first good night kiss he has allowed in years.

After reading Mary her story, Carlos stays for another hour until Beth throws him out. She knows that he tries to keep her company to make this easier on her, to make her feel less lonely, but she tells him to take care of his own family.

***

Beth had had a wonderful day. Mary was at Eddie and Annie’s for a sleepover, Jane, Emma and Kenny were at Dean’s, and Rio and Danny were at comic con. It had been a while since she had had a whole day to herself and she had used it to the fullest. She had treated herself to a spa day, getting a massage, a whole-body scrub, a much-needed waxing and in the end, she had gotten her hair and nails done. When she headed home she felt relaxed and very comfortable in her body. 

She went into the bedroom and got rid of her clothing, opting for a dark green, lacey negligee and the matching panties. Back in the living room she treated herself to a glass of wine, wrapped herself in a blanket on the sofa and read. The house was quiet around her and she enjoyed the silence. Immersed in her book, she didn’t notice time passing. When it started to get dark outside she switched on the lamp on the coffee table, otherwise she didn’t move much. Too preoccupied with her book, she didn’t even hear the front door opening and Rio stepping inside. 

She looked up when he cleared his throat loudly. He was leaned against the door frame looking at her. She took him in and a smile snuck over her face. He looked ridiculous, yet weirdly sexy, in his Star Trek uniform or whatever it was called. 

“How long have you been standing there?” she asked.

“Where am I? What kind of planet is this?” he asked, grinning like an idiot. She rolled her eyes, but couldn’t help the smile that tugged at her lips.

“Home, you goof,” she said.

“What are you saying? I have never seen a place quite like this.” He started walking towards her slowly.

“You haven’t? What is so different about it?” she asked, playing along, because she knew that look on his face and she liked where this was heading.

“You,” he answered and sat on the other end of the sofa, grabbing for her blanket and slowly pulling it off her. He swallowed audibly when he was finally able to see all of her. “I have never seen a more beautiful creature during my travels.” She raised one eyebrow at him, but blushed all the same at the hunger she saw in his eyes that were dilated with desire. Her breath hitched a little when he crawled near her and laid his hands on her knees. 

“You haven’t?” she asked breathlessly. He shook his head, spreading her legs and then running one hand down her thigh towards her core. He pulled her panties to the side and looked at her. Wetting his lips with his tongue, he said, “And what is this? I think I will have to explore it.” He winked at her before he ducked down and kissed the inside of her thigh just inches from her wet center. 

“Wait,” she gasped, “Where is Danny?”

“Dropped him off at his father’s,” he answered and kissed her again, this time closer. He trailed kisses towards her core and when he reached her lips, he hummed in appreciation.

“So soft,” he murmured and sucked at them lightly. Beth moaned and scooted lower in order to increase the contact. He ran one finger over her clit and let it trail down and down until he let it slip inside her. She was already soaking for him. He groaned and pulled his hand away.

“Sorry, honey, I can’t wait,” he said and with that he pulled his pants down and entered her swiftly. She cried out as arousal washed through her. He didn’t give her time to adjust, but pulled out immediately and pushed in again, establishing a fast pace that had her struggling to catch her breath. 

It didn’t take long until her walls began to tighten and his movements become erratic. He moved his hand that was currently exploring her right breast towards her core and began stroking her clit at a slow pace that was driving her crazy. 

“Oh god, Rio,” she gasped out, “Get on with it.” Even though he was so close, he couldn’t hold in a chuckle. She tightened her pelvic muscles in response and his soft laughter turned into a low growl as he sped up both his thrusts and his ministrations of her clit. Within seconds he sent her over the edge and as soon as she started to contract around him he went as well.

He went boneless in her arms and as soon as she got down from her post-orgasmic high, and she was able to notice something besides the waves of pleasure rocking her body and the distinct swooshing in her ears, she marveled at the feel of his weight on top of her. Apparently, it took him a while to come down himself, because a couple of moments passed before he did anything but breath heavily. When he stirred, he pushed himself up on his elbows and looked her in the eye.

“I love you, Elizabeth,” he whispered and kissed her languidly.

“And I love you,” she whispered back. 

***

Everything is just getting worse, when two days later Dean comes by to pick up the kids. None of the kids really want to go, but Beth has told them that their father loves them and that he would be hurt if they don’t visit him anymore. Jane and Danny feel that they are too old to still spend the night at their dad’s and Emma doesn’t want to go without them. Neither of them feels comfortable leaving Beth alone. Beth still makes them go, less frequently though, but she feels guilty that their interest in spending time with Dean is wavering.

She opens the door when Dean rings the bell and steps back to let him in. He walks into the kitchen and she follows.

“Coffee?” she asks. He nods his head and she takes out a cup to pour him some. She slides the cup over the kitchen counter towards him and as soon as he has taken the cup in hand he takes a sip. He gives her a once over and she is glad that she has taken her time on herself today. She has covered up the dark circles beneath her eyes and curled her hair, even though she doesn’t have plans to go out today. 

“So, how are you?” he asks, going for casual, but she has been with him for almost twenty years, knowing him for a little over 25 by now, and is sure that nothing about this question is casual. He has heard about Rio, of course, there really is no way that she can pretend that everything is fine.

“Okay, I guess,” she says, not wanting to let him know just how miserable she is.

“Meaning you’re miserable,” he says, using the exact same word that has just gone through her head. She just shrugs. What was she supposed to say.

“I’ve always wondered when you’re good-for-nothing boyfriend would get himself arrested,” he says parenthetically, acting as if he is just teasing a little, when he is actually saying what he is really thinking.

“Yes, well,” she says, not really interested in getting into this argument with him.

“You know, this would never have happened if you had just…,” he trails off, probably feeling stupid himself for going down that road. Beth cannot help but snort. He is just such a douche. It has been almost seven years and he is still mentioning this.

“Stayed with you?” she finishes his question for him, her eyebrows rising towards her hairline. He nods.

“Why would I have done that?” she asks incredulously.

“Maybe so that this wouldn’t have happened?” he counters, just as incredulous.

“A lot of good things have happened, as well, and this will be over before you know it,” she snaps.

“It won’t, Bethy. He has killed someone or maybe even multiple someones. You don’t have to stay here. I can take care of you.” For real? Is this really happening in her kitchen? Is Dean proposing what she thinks he is?

“You have a wife and twins,” she says, not believing what she is hearing right now.

“Oh, come on, Beth. You know we belong together. I could really take care of you now. The business has never gone better,” he rambles. She feels like her head is going to explode. After seven fucking years. What is even going on?

“Are you out of your fucking mind? Rio takes better care of me than you ever have and ever could,” she snaps.

“I can’t believe it. You’re still as naïve as you were seven years ago,” he says, sounding resigned. And then he adds, speaking to her as if she were retarded, “Your boyfriend is a fucking murderer.”

“No, he isn’t. Don’t act like you know anything about him!”

“And what are you saying, he has taken care of you? Is that really all you care about? A big house and fancy watches,” he gestures first to the upper floor then to her left arm, “Don’t you even care, that people have died for all the extravagant shit your boyfriend is buying you?”

“Stop calling him that! He is my husband now and I won’t have you belittle him or me or what we have built out of the pile of shit you left me with!” She is furious, but she keeps her voice under control, she doesn’t want the kids to hear any of this.

“I haven’t left you! And what do you mean, he is your husband now?” he snaps.

“You might as well have. Fucking your secretary and gambling our money away isn’t far from it,” she says viciously and adds, “Rio and I got married a few weeks ago.” He deflates a little, but at the same time she can see the jealous rage starting to contort his features.

“Are you insane?” he shrieks.

“No! Are you?” she hisses back.

“You have married that thug? Oh my god, you’re even more stupid than I thought you were! I don’t care what you do to yourself, Beth, but have you even for one second thought about the kids?” She huffs out an angry laugh. He is the one who has fucked up their marriage, who fucked his secretary without thinking of his four, back then very small, children. What a fucking hypocrite. 

“If I could only be more like you,” she says sardonically, “Only ever thinking about the kids. But please, be so kind and remind me, how exactly has fucking your secretary and putting their home at risk benefitted them in any way?”

“At least I didn’t ruin their lives,” he shoots, “Do you know that Marcus has broken up with Janey over this?” His eyes are cruel as he looks at her, reveling in the feeling of having one upped her. 

“What?” she wheezes. She knows how smitten Jane has been with Marcus. She hasn’t been able to speak about anything else but him for months. And even though she isn’t exactly sure how she feels about him, she has been so happy for her little girl.

“Won’t be winning any mother of the year awards, Bethy,” he drawls smugly.

“Is there a problem here,” a voice to her left suddenly says and she turns around swiftly. It’s Carlos and she is beyond glad to see him. She tries to give him a smile, but fails miserably.

“Dean was just about to go,” she says. When she turns around, she is glad to see that Dean isn’t looking as smug anymore. Carlos scares him and she would have loved to give him the okay to punch her ex-husband’s lights out. But there are still her kids, waiting upstairs for their father to take them with him.

“Is that so?” Carlos asks lazily, one eyebrow slowly lifting.

“Kids,” she calls out and immediately she can hear the commotion upstairs of her kids getting ready to leave the house.

“Dean, you are not welcome here anymore,” she says calmly, “When you want to see the kids it will be either me or my husband bringing them over to your place.” He opens his mouth to answer, but closes it again, when he hears his children descending the stairs. Beth hugs all of them, hugging Jane a little tighter than she normally would have and sends them on their way.

“How much have you heard?” she asks Carlos as she turn around after shutting the door behind the kids.

“Oh, not much. Just snippets.” She raises one eyebrow. “Tiny snippets.”

“So, basically everything?” she asks.

“Basically, yes,” he answers and they share a smile. She walks over him and gives him a short hug.

“I don’t know what I would do without you, Carlos.” He chuckles and returns her hug.

In the end, she decides to not stay at home for the evening. Instead she calls for Mary and together they make their way to Eddie and Annie’s. It isn’t weakness to spend an evening with her sister and her beautiful family, after all. But it gives her strength and after the first three days of the week have turned out hellishly she could really use some.

***

They had talked about getting married. Or rather Rio had talked about getting married and Beth had tried to avoid it. She loved Rio like she had never loved anyone before, but the thought of marriage didn’t appeal to her at all. She knew that they were meant for each other, that Rio wouldn’t leave her and that she sure as hell wasn’t going to leave him. For her it made their relationship just that much more special to not be married. Because they decided to stay together and love each other without the need to tie themselves to each other. She had experienced it with Dean. Staying together out of obligation. She didn’t want that again, she wanted everything to stay exactly as it was.

She knew that Rio liked the idea of being married. He sometimes complained that they didn’t bear the same last name and that legally he didn’t have a say in a lot of things. He liked to paint worst-case scenarios, but Beth found him over-dramatic and talked him down whenever the topic came up.

She felt that Rio mostly accepted her attitude towards marriage. For he hadn’t really asked her yet. She knew that should he ever really ask her that there would be some grand gesture. She also knew that she could never refuse him if said grand gesture should ever come. That is why she sometimes asked him not to ask her when they went somewhere special. And he didn’t because he knew that she would say yes if he did, but he didn’t want to force anything on her.

Today, however, was different. Today, apparently, he didn’t feel like accepting her refusal to get married, when they had been together for so long, when even her sister had gotten married five years ago, when she had been married before to that douchebag Dean. 

He was dealing with something at work that left him grumpy. Also, it was Dean’s day to pick up the kids and even after all these years Rio disliked him intensely. Beth knew that, of course, and she also knew that he was in a bad mood, so she dealt with Dean quickly.

She prepared a nice dinner for them after Dean left and when she put it front of Rio he only picked at it. She knew that they would fight the moment that he sat down at the table. And it wouldn’t be the good kind of fighting that was followed by angry sex. It would be the bad kind of fighting that would have him sleep in the guest room.

She tried to make light chit chat, but he didn’t raise to it and kept moping instead. When she was half way through her dinner, she decided that she would rather get their fight over with, put her cutlery to the side, audibly clinking against her plate, and said, “Okay, out with it. What is bothering you?” He raised a sardonic eyebrow at her.

“Why do you ask, when you know exactly what is bothering me?” he asked back.

“I just don’t understand you. Why is this so important to you?”

“Because of all the reasons I have already told you a million times,” he growls. He was exaggerating but she didn’t call him out on it. 

“I love you, Rio, a marriage certificate won’t make that any more true. Nothing would change,” she says softly.

“When nothing would change, why do you fight it so much?” he shot back.

“Because I’ve been through that already.”

“But I haven’t,” he snaps, his eyes sparkling with anger. She averted her gaze, looking down at her pate. She knew, of course, that he had never been married and this was not about denying him that. This was about her not wanting to repeat her mistakes, or rather this was about her being afraid of her relationship with Rio turning into something else. Plainly, she was afraid that if they changed something about their relationship that they might grow apart. Maybe it hadn’t been her and Dean that didn’t fit, maybe it had been the marriage. But it also made her feel like a bitch to think that anything could ever change between them. When she looked back at him, his anger had drained and was replaced by an expression of deep hurt that Beth had never seen on his face before.

“I sometimes wonder what it was about Dean that made him someone you wanted to marry that I seem to lack,” he said quietly, “Or Eddie. Your sister couldn’t wait to get married to him and you supported them. So much so, that you went all bridezilla with her and sobbed through the entire ceremony. What makes him a guy to marry and me… not?” This was opening an angle to the discussion that she had never considered and it made her feel rotten. For her it was absolutely clear that Rio was the love of her life and that there would never come anyone else ever. And she had thought that he understood. She had thought that this was just a topic on which they budded heads. She felt like such a bitch. She didn’t answer him. Not because she didn’t want to, but because she didn’t have anything to say for herself.

“I’m going for a drive,” he said, “Don’t wait up.” He was out the door within seconds and, of course, she tried to wait up. She went to the bedroom to wait there, reading or at least trying. Deep down she had known that he wanted to get married, but she hadn’t known how her refusal made him feel. She had believed that he ultimately accepted her decision. She never meant to make him doubt himself or their relationship. 

She must have nodded of, because when she came to again, the bedside lamp had been switched off and her book was resting on the nightstand. Rio must be home. She still felt miserable for hurting him, so she got out of the bed, intend on settling their row immediately. When she went over to the guest room, Rio was still awake, scrolling through his phone.

“Hi,” she whispered.

“Hi,” he answered still angry but not about to push her away. That was something she loved about him. No matter how angry he was, after his calming drive around the block, he never denied her the chance to make it right again. Dean would have given her the cold shoulder for days, ignoring each and every of her attempts to talk. But Rio had never had any desire to punish her. How could she believe that they wouldn’t work when he was always willing to hear her?

She walked around the bed and climbed in beside him, scooting up to him and wrapping herself around him. He put the phone away and put his arm around her, but didn’t say anything.

“I didn’t know that this was how you felt,” she whispered.

“Well, it is.”

“I always thought that the not getting married part was what made us so special. That the only thing binding us together was our love, that we didn’t need a marriage certificate, that we were above marriage.” She looked up at him and saw his jaw tick. “Why would you even want to marry me when I’m such a self-absorbed bitch?” He snorted quietly, hearing the apology that she hadn’t voiced outright. 

“I want to see you in that dress. I want you to be mine. I want that ring. I want you to have my name. I want to vow to be with you until I die,” he said and Beth’s eyes stung. She turned her head up towards him and kissed him. 

“I feel like I don’t deserve this,” she whispered against his lips.

“That is beside the point and not for you to decide,” he growled, deepening the kiss, gently biting her lower lip. She moaned into his mouth. They kissed for a few minutes before they broke apart again.

“I will stay with you until I die if you have me.”

“That’s not the same, Elizabeth,” he snapped and pushed her away a few inches so he could look down at her. His eyebrows were furrowed, his look intense.

“I know,” she said, averting her gaze guiltily, but he just grabbed her chin and guided her face towards his. “I don’t want anyone else but you. I have never wanted anyone more than you. I just didn’t want to repeat anything with you.”

“Any mistakes, you mean?” His eyebrows rose and he looked hurt.

“No,” she yelped, “You could never be a mistake. I married Dean because it was what everyone expected of me. I thought that we would make our own rules and be happier for it.”

“So, you’re expecting to be unhappy with me, should we get married?” Was he twisting her word on purpose?

“No! I love you more than I have ever loved anyone. I want to be with no one else. I will stay with you for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and health, as long as you’ll have me,” she rambled.

“For someone who doesn’t want to get married, you have the vow part down,” he smirked. She shoved him playfully.

“You’re doing this on purpose,” she squealed. He laughed and she joined him. They lay in each other’s arms for a few minutes, before she hesitantly said, “I won’t say no if you ask me.”

“I ain’t asking,” he answered smirking, “Not tonight anyway.” It was his turn to laugh when he looked into her stunned face. She broke into a smile herself and pulled him close. Their fight was officially over, but she still felt like a dick. They snuggled for a while and at one point Rio’s hands began wandering underneath her top. He kissed her deeply and she knew even before he pressed his hips against her that he was hard for her. But the arousal that coursed through her only made her feel worse about herself.

“Rio,” she moaned, in between kisses, “I can’t.”

“What? Why?” he asked incredulously.

“I feel like such a dick. Can’t we just snuggle?” He pulled her closer and rested his head on top of hers and soon they slept.

***

When Beth and Mary return from Annie’s around Mary’s bedtime, Beth feels exhausted. It has been hard to visit them and see how happy they are. Yes, they are sad that Rio is in jail, but as long as they have each other, nothing could ever really shake them. Beth knows that feeling, because that is how she feels when she is with Rio. 

Of course, it is that day that Mary decides to ask her the most heart-breaking questions. Because it’s not as if she isn’t already feeling like a train wreck. When she sits snuggled up with her youngest daughter and reads her a story, she suddenly speaks.

“Mommy?” she says, drawing out the vowels.  
“Yes, baby?” 

“Is daddy a bad man?” she asks, sadly looking up at her.

“What? Why would you even ask that?” Beth is shocked and nearly chokes on her words.

“Kessi from school said that my daddy must be a bad man because he is in jail,” Mary says. Wow, what kind of a week is this? The hits just keep on coming. And how isn’t she used to it by now? How isn’t she prepared for them by now?

“Honey,” she says and gently grabs Mary’s shoulders so that they are looking at each other straight on. “Your father is not a bad man!” She enunciates the words slowly to stress her point.

“But why is he in jail then?” How is she even supposed to answer such a question? 

“Sometimes people do bad things, but that doesn’t make them bad,” she tries. She has no idea how to explain this to her six-year-old daughter. She knows that Rio isn’t a bad man, but she doesn’t know how to make her daughter understand that he sometimes had to do bad things to care for them. Because if she was completely honest with herself, he didn’t really _have _to do those things. He could have gone legit years ago. He had thought about it right after Mary’s birth, but his business had been a part of him, just as it is now. Beth had been scared that if he went legit for her and the kids, he would resent them for it later. That is why she had told him not to rush anything and eventually he had forgotten about the idea.__

__“So, did daddy do a bad thing?” Mary asks._ _

__“Yes and no,” Beth answers, “He did a few things that weren’t good, but he didn’t do everything they say he did.” She doesn’t want her little girl to lose faith in her father. But she cannot outright lie, she cannot tell her that her daddy is completely innocent when he really isn’t._ _

__“Why would the police lie? Uncle Stan says that police men don’t lie.”_ _

__“There are good and bad people everywhere, even in the police,” she tries to explain. This conversation is killing her. But she has promised Rio that she would get through it if he ever got arrested. So, she blinks back the tears and listens to her daughter._ _

__“What did daddy do?” Another such question that she has no idea how to answer._ _

__“I don’t know,” she opts for the truth, because Rio hadn’t told her much about business during the last years. He didn’t want her to worry and he also didn’t want her to have to lie for him. “But I know that he tries to take care of us and that everything he does, he does with that goal in mind.” Mary ponders that for a moment._ _

__“But he could sell cars, like Dean. Or go to an office and work there like Kessie’s dad.”_ _

__“Sometimes it is not that easy.” She knows she is being cryptic, but what is she supposed to say._ _

__“Daddy loves us, doesn’t he?” Her little face is scrunched up, her little brows furrowed with the effort of understanding something that she shouldn’t have to understand at her tender age._ _

__“Oh yes, very much.”_ _

__“I will tell him that he has to apologize and that he has to do better in the future,” she says, her face lighting up, now that she thinks she has found a solution to the problem. “You know, we don’t have to live in such a big house if daddy has to do bad things to pay for it. My friend Lara lives in an apartment and they have a pool. We could move there. I would like to have a pool.” Beth smiles at her sadly. If only it was that easy._ _

__“Be sure to tell him that, sweetie,” she whispers, her lips against her daughter’s hair as she kisses her. Mary’s thirst for answers seems to be stilled for the moment and Beth couldn’t be more glad. Because what would she have said if Mary had asked her what is was exactly that Rio did._ _

__Mary snuggles into her bed and closes her eyes. “Daddy probably had already apologized. He always tells me to apologize when I do something bad. So, he will be back soon.” Beth just hopes that she is right._ _

__She sits with her until she is sure that Mary has fallen asleep. Then she walks downstairs and calls Jane. It rings a couple of times before she picks up._ _

__“Hi Mum,” she says, sounding weary._ _

__“Hi hon!”_ _

__“So, I guess that Dad has told you?” A hint of anger reverberates in her voice and Beth winces._ _

__“I’m so sorry,” she says. It’s like she isn’t doing much else these days but apologizing for things that are totally out of her control._ _

__“What for?” And if Beth isn’t mistaken, Jane sounds surprised._ _

__“Well, for Marcus breaking up with you.”_ _

__“That’s not your fault.”_ _

__“Maybe not directly, but in a broader sense it is, isn’t it?”_ _

__“No! Marcus is a dick!” she says forcefully and Beth snorts quietly. “No, Mum, he really is. If he doesn’t want to be there for me when I need him, I can certainly do without him.” What a grown-up thing to say. But still it pains Beth that her daughter has to go through such a thing._ _

__“I’m proud you’re such a strong, young woman,” Beth whispers._ _

__“I learned all of that from you,” she jokes, tone light but with an edge to it that told Beth that she meant it._ _

__“Oh, come on…”_ _

__“I mean that, Mum,” she huffs, “I also learned that love doesn’t work that way. You and Rio are always there for one another. I remember how bad it was when you and Dad first separated.” Beth is stunned._ _

__“I had hoped that I had kept that from you,” she wheezes._ _

__“You did, most of the time. But I sometimes heard you cry at night and you never smiled. And do you remember that one time when you burst out crying and I told you that Dad would surely come back if you just asked nicely?” Beth hasn’t thought about that time for ages. “And then Rio came and suddenly you were happy, always smiling, always laughing.”_ _

__“Yeah, he does that for me,” she says and the smile is audible in her voice._ _

__“See? You’re still swooning over him after all these years.” She laughs. “That is what I want and if I can’t have it with Marcus, then I don’t want Marcus.”_ _

__“Rio and I have had our rough patches as well. That day I cried in the kitchen, I didn’t cry over your father, but over Rio. We had been fighting and he had broken up with me.”_ _

__“I didn’t know that.”_ _

__“Yes, well, like I said, I tried to keep that from you.”_ _

__“Did you do something to make him angry?” she asks._ _

__“Yes, I did.”_ _

__“Was he right to dump you?”_ _

__“Yes,” she answers._ _

__“Why did he come back?”_ _

__“He loved me and it probably didn’t hurt that I was pregnant,” she says laughing, “But I don’t recommend that, honey!” Now Jane laughs with her._ _

__“Don’t worry, Mum,” she is silent for a couple of seconds before she goes on, “Will you ever tell us what it is that Rio does?” Beth swallows audibly._ _

__“I don’t know,” she answers, “I feel like that is a conversation that Rio should be present for.”_ _

__“Yeah, I guess you’re right.”_ _

__They talk for a couple of minutes more and when they hang up Beth feels a little better than before the. She treats herself to a glass of wine and watches some TV. She stretches out on the sofa and settles on a rerun of The Bachelor, but it is not as fun to watch reality TV without her friends. After a while, she decides to go to bed early. However, sleep doesn’t come. She tosses and turns for hours before she falls into a fitful sleep._ _

__When the alarm goes off in the morning she feels as if she has slept an hour tops. Still she gets out of bed and wakes up Mary. They have breakfast together and then Beth walks her to school. When she returns home, she takes one look into the fridge and decides to take a trip to the supermarket. Of course, she goes to Fine and Frugal. Without Rio around she likes to dwell on her memories of their past. And this is where they started._ _

__She takes her time browsing through the aisles. Picking up different items and comparing their ingredients, choosing the freshest fruits, deciding what to cook over the next days. It is an hour before she finds herself on her way to the checkout and she has packed way more into the cart than she has originally intended to. There is a display of chocolate treats that catches her eye and she comes to a halt before it examining the colorful, little boxes, pondering whether or not to get one for Mary. On the one hand, she doesn’t like to give her children too much sugar, on the other, when has it ever been a better time to indulge them a little. She looks at the different flavors that they come in, when she is suddenly ripped out of her thoughts by an unwelcome voice._ _

__“Mrs Medina, fancy meeting you here.” her head snapped around and her eyes landed on Agent Turner. She nodded at him in greeting, not really in the mood for his bullshit._ _

__“Coming back to the scene of the crime, I see,” he says pleasantly. Her eyes widen a fraction, but she manages to keep her face under control._ _

__“Pardon me?” she says sweetly, hoping that Turner isn’t able to hear the slight tremor in her voice. He laughs, a carefree sound that doesn’t fit the situation._ _

__“Oh, I know all about it,” he says still chuckling, gesturing to the entirety of the store._ _

__“Are you charging me with anything, Agent Turner?” She raises and eyebrow in question, looking at him as if she weren’t scared shitless, as if this meeting wasn’t bothering her._ _

__“No, no, no,” he answers, smiling and raising his hands warding off her accusation, “Not today, anyway.” He winks at her and turns around. “Have a good one,” he calls over his shoulder. She is stunned into silence and immobility, looking after him as he makes his way to the exit. He turns to look at her one last time before he leaves the store and grins at her smugly._ _

__Has the fucker just threatened her? Rage boils inside of her and she throws one of each flavor chocolate treats into the cart and forcefully steers it towards the checkout. Apparently, this is what she gets for one upping him at Camilla’s. Fucking Turner, she thinks, just wait and see, fucking bastard._ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I haven't written a single word for chapter 5, so you might have to wait a little. But it is all planned out and Beth and Rio will finally see each other again. So, that is something to look forward to.
> 
> Please leave comments and kudos, I live for them and they always make me itch for my keyboard.


	5. Five

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Beth finds her inner badass.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so very sorry for taking so long. This is just a short chapter, but I thought it would be better to post it than to leave you hanging even longer.
> 
> This is also a reminder for all those people whom I've told that I would update the story, that I actually intend to be true to my promise. Enjoy.

As soon as she has loaded up the trunk with her purchases, she goes through her purse in search of her phone. Still fuming with rage, she dials Carlos’s number. He picks up on the third ring.

“Whatever you are doing to get Rio out, I want in,” she blurts as soon as she hears him pick up.

“Huh?”

“I want to know everything. I will no longer be shut out,” she says urgently.

“What? Why?” Carlos asks.

“As soon as you can make time, I expect you at the house to let me in on everything,” she rushes on.

“I can’t today, Beth, I’m sorry. I have a couple of things to take care of at home,” he says apologetically.

“Well, tomorrow then,” she snaps, already feeling somewhat guilty for taking out her feelings on Carlos.

“Okay. I’ll be there around ten.”

“Good. Any chance you’re running into Eddie later?” she enquires.

“I’ll probably talk to him later, why?”

“Tell him to be ready to pick me up somewhere later. Tell him to have the car ready,” she instructs.

“Yes, boss,” he teases and then adds, “Don’t do anything stupid, will you?”

“I won’t.” And she hangs up the phone. 

She gets into her car and instead of going home she drives straight for one of the warehouses. She knows that Rio has an office in there and even though she hasn’t been there in a long time she still has the keys. Once inside she goes through his files and sure enough, she finds what she is looking for. She can’t believe her luck when she sees that today is indeed the perfect day to take action. She presses the file against her chest and silently thanks her superbly organized husband. Finally, something is going to happen. She takes the file and drives home.

In her kitchen she puts the groceries away, all the while going over her plan on how to proceed from here. After about half an hour she is set on doing it and on doing it today. And then all she can do is wait.

When Mary finally arrives home, Beth has already packed a bag for her and after watching her eat her lunch she brings her right over to Annie’s. She pulls up outside of the small house that Eddie has bought for her after the wedding. Every time Beth sets her eyes on it, she thinks it couldn’t be more perfect. The front garden is well kept, with flower beds lining the narrow path towards the house. The house is painted white and they have installed a swing on the veranda, similar to the one she had had at the old house, the one Rio and Annie had mocked her about. But as it turns out Eddie and her have a very similar taste when it comes to home decoration. 

Mary gets out of the car as soon as the car has stopped and bounces off towards the house. When Beth catches up, she has already rung the doorbell. 

“Auntie Annie,” she squeals when the door opens and she flings herself into Annie’s arms.

“Hey baby,” Annie answers, drawing out the vowels, “I’m so glad to see you!” They hug tightly and Annie kisses Mary’s head. “You know, Ava is already waiting for you in her room. Everything is set up for a tea party.” Mary squeals again and takes off at top speed.

“Hey Annie,” Beth says and hugs her sister. 

“So, what’s so important?” Annie asks instead of answering her.

“I need to go somewhere,” she answers. Annie just raises an inquisitive eyebrow, making Beth blush a little. She isn’t really sure that it would be wise to share her plan with Annie, but lying isn’t really an option either.

“Please don’t ask,” she whispers, releasing a breath.

“Well, I wouldn’t if you weren’t dragging my husband into it,” Annie says, frowning and crossing her arms in front of her chest. It is just weird when Annie acts all grown up, but then again, she has got it together now, even more so than Beth at times. 

“He just needs to pick me up somewhere,” Beth tries.

“Well, the guy who drives the getaway car gets just as arrested as the person jumping into it,” she answers sternly.

“Do you want me to ask Mr Cisco?” She isn’t going to tell Annie what she has planned, because she isn’t going to change her mind and she isn’t interested in a discussion with her sister.

“No,” Annie says quietly, “Just make sure, he is safe.”

“Why do you assume he isn’t?” Is she that obvious?

“Well, you’re looking way better than you have since Rio was arrested, so I’m guessing that you have a plan.” Well, that answers that question. But, of course, Annie would be able to tell, she is her little sister and her best friend after all.

“How do I look?”

“Less defeated,” she says and gives her a warm smile, “And I’m glad if you have figured out a way to resolve this, but I can’t lose my husband over this. I have seen what that’s like, so I’ll pass.”

“You’d better,” Beth answers and pulls her into her arms again. “You know I would never put any of you in danger,” she whispers into her sister’s ear, “Thank you for taking Mary.”

She calls out her goodbye to Mary, gives her sister a last hug and a reassuring smile and is out of the house. The weight of what she is going to do hits her just as she descends off the last step and her heartbeat picks up almost painfully. 

She gets into the car, looks at herself in the rearview mirror, puts the key into the ignition and drives off without another look back.

The GPS tells her that she is going to need about four and a half hours to get there, so she puts on some music and does her best to stop thinking about what she is going to do. After about an hour she calls Eddie to tell him where he needs to pick her up. Then she focuses on the road again. 

This is the last time she will ever drive her momma van and she lovingly brushes her right hand over the dashboard. There is a little round imprint of the small projectile of one of Kenny’s toy guns. Even though it had been a toy, the tiny yellow balls left it with surprising force and she had to take the gun off him within the day of buying it. When her hand lands back on the gear shift, she is reminded of the marks that were left there by Emma’s baby teeth. She has to swallow back tears. She has never wanted to part with this car. It had looked like the van wasn’t going to make it once and then she had begged Rio to just repair it disregarding the price. It had cost more than the car was worth but she would have paid more still. But now that she drives towards her destination, she knows that there are more important things than a car. And her husband sure as hell is one of them. The memories will stay with her even without the car. And more importantly her kids will stay with her and they will make more memories with the next car. 

She stops a couple of blocks from her destination and gets out of the car. She has been married to a car dealer for long enough to know what she has to do to the car to make it look real. She pops open the hood and goes to work. When she gets in again, the car starts without problems and again tears well in her eyes when she realizes that this is going to be the last time that she will ever start her car. It takes about two blocks until the engine runs hot and thick smoke starts rising from the hood. It begins to stutter a couple of blocks later and then it dies and with it a piece of Beth’s soul. She uses the remaining momentum to roll a few more meters and comes to stop before a charming, white colonial style house with green shutters. 

On her way to the door, she breathes deeply to calm her nerves. She has handled more dangerous situations than this one and didn’t bat an eye then, why should she now? There are no guns awaiting her this time. 

She rings the doorbell and is surprised when a handsome young man opens the door. He smiles at her questioningly. “Hi. Can I help you?” he asks. She sends him her perfect Stepfort smile.

“I’m so sorry to disturb you,” she says, wringing her hand as if she was nervous about interrupting his day. “My car just broke down and I was hoping it would be okay for me to use your phone.” His smile deepens and he is about to take a step back and let her in, when a squeal sounds behind him, “Daddy, Daddy!” And suddenly a small girl of about four or five years appears next to him. She stops dead, clutching her daddy’s leg, when she spots Beth and looks at her suspiciously for a few seconds, before she turns her head and looks up at her father. “Who’s that Daddy?”

Beth crouches down and says, “I’m Beth, sweety.” She extends her hand. The little girl takes it and replies, “I’m Gretchen. Do you want a cookie? Daddy and I are baking them right now.” 

“I would love one. But first I would like to use your phone if that’s okay with your daddy.” She looks up at the man and he nods.

“Yes. Yes, that shouldn’t be a problem,” he says and extends his hand to Beth, “I’m Douglas. Doug.”

“Elizabeth. Beth,” she replies and winks at him. He chuckles and finally steps back to let her in. As soon as she steps into the house the delicious smell of cookies floods her nostrils.

“Oh, that smells delicious, Gretchen.” The little girl beams at her and pulls her to the phone by her hand. Beth is glad that she knows Eddie’s number by heart by now. It would have been hard to sell the Out-of-Battery number if she had to pull her phone out to find his number. He picks up almost immediately.

“Yes?” he says.

“Hi Eddie,” she replies, making her voice crack a little.

“What’s wrong? What have you gotten yourself into?” He sounds frantic. Annie has probably already spoken to him and made him anxious.

“I… my car… it broke down.” This time she doesn’t have to fake it. Tears spring to her eyes, her chin wobbles and her voice is rough.

“Yes, I’m on my way. It shouldn’t be more than forty minutes.”

“I’m so sorry,” she sobs, “I’m so sorry to bother you like this.” Thankfully Eddie isn’t stupid and he sees through her performance.

“Is someone listening to you?”

“Yes.”

“Ahh okay. You had me scared there for a minute.”

“Sorry,” she repeats, “Can you please come? I’m at…” She trails off and looks at Dough teary eyed. He quickly tells her the address with a sympathetic look on his face. She quickly repeats the address back to Eddie who, of course, knows it already because she has told it to him three and a half hours ago.

“Yes, I’m driving as fast as I can. I’ve brought Cisco and Trigger with me, just in case.”

“Thank you,” she sobs. This is going even better than she has hoped. Eddie might have filled out a little during the last few years, but he still isn’t half as scary as Carlos or any of the other guys. She hangs up, pulls her hands through her face as if to clean herself up, when in reality she just smudges her mascara a bit to emphasize the fact that she has been crying. She turns from the phone and walks towards Doug and Gretchen.

“Thank you for letting me use your phone,” she says and gives them a little wave, “I’ll be out of your hair.” Righting her bag on her shoulder, she walks towards the door, when just on cue a small voice behind her cries, “No, Beth! You haven’t tasted our cookies yet.”

“Maybe you can give me one to go. I wouldn’t want to be intruding on your time with your daddy,” Beth answers, rubbing at her cheeks acting self-conscious, when she is in fact displaying her smudged make-up. 

“No, you’re not intruding. Please stay. Coffee?” Doug asks, eating her act up like she knew he would.

“Yes, that would be great,” she sighs gratefully. 

“Do you maybe want to use the bathroom?” She does her best to look embarrassed.

“Oh yes, I must look like such a mess.” He shows her to the small downstairs guest bathroom and she quickly fixes herself up, before she joins them in the kitchen again. She compliments the house, the cookie and the coffee and swoons over how adorable Gretchen is. All the while, she looks at her watch every few seconds, indicating that she is impatient for Eddie to arrive.

“So, is your husband coming to pick you up?” Doug asks. Beth averts her gaze, stricken. She doesn’t have to act now.

“No, he has been taken from us,” she says wistfully, heavily implying his death without outright lying.

“Oh.” Is all Doug answers and he looks at her dumbfounded for a few moments before he says, “I’m so very sorry.”

“Well, it was inevitable. He got mixed up with wrong kind of people.” She is, of course, talking about Agent Turner, but Douglas doesn’t quite need to know that just yet. And then as if a dam has been broken, she starts telling him about Rio, her Rio, the way she knows him, not the heinous lies that Turner likes to spread. She tells him how he was there for her through the end of her first marriage, how she had screwed up everything so royally (although she doesn’t go into detail on how exactly) and still he came back to her and her four kids that he cared for as if they were his own, even though a family had never been something that he had seen for himself. She tells him about the comic conventions and about running with Kenny and how everything started in her measly mamma van.

“It’s just this car,” she sobs, “There are so many memories in that car. All these scratches and tiny reminders that the kids left behind.” The tears have started rolling some time during her story and Doug is still eating it up. At one point he took her hand during her story in reassurance and even now his eyes are looking suspiciously light. Damn it, she is so good.

“Can’t you repair the car?” he asks.

“Well, I could. But that would cost more than the car is worth and money is tight. Rio wanted to buy me a new car the last time it broke down, but I begged him to repair it and well,” she pauses, looking into the distance with a dreamy smile on her face, “in the end he always did what I wanted. He could never say no to me.” She looks at Doug then, blushing. He laughs and just then, in the most perfect moment he could have chosen, Agent Turner enters the house and finds Beth sitting at the kitchen island joking with his husband. He stops dead at the sight that greets him. 

Beth brushes the false bravado away albeit regretfully, because she has really enjoyed her chat with Douglas, who’s turned out to be a charming man. She gets up from the stool she has been perched on and turns towards Turner.

“Oh, hello Agent Turner,” she says innocently, “I was just getting to know you lovely husband and, boy, those cookies that Gretchen made,” she pauses, letting her mouth fall open at the thought of the mouthwatering baked goods, “I wouldn’t mind coming home to that every weekend.”

“What are you doing here?” Turner snaps a hint of fear in his voice.

“Jimmy,” Doug scolds, apparently not comprehending what is going on in his kitchen. Beth raises an eyebrow at him as if she was just as affronted at his rude behavior as Turner’s husband.

“I’m not kidding,” he grinds out, “What are you doing here?”

“Just a quick reminder, Jimmy,” she says innocently and just on cue the doorbell rings. This couldn’t have run any smother, she thinks to herself.

“Oh, that must be my ride,” she says and turns to Doug. She can see his eyes widen as Turner opens the door to the three thugs standing on his doorstep. “Douglas, it was a pleasure to meet you. I just wish it had been under different circumstances. I can just tell, we would have been great friends. Well, you have your husband to thank for that.” She shrugs sadly. “Thank you, for your hospitality. I must be off.” She turns around and head towards the door.

“Bye-bye, Jimmy,” she breathes as she passes Turner on her way out. Just as she is crossing the threshold, Turner finds his voice.

“Elizabeth,” he calls and she turns towards him, smiling sweetly, “Just a quick reminder of what?”

“Of the fact that if you’re so hell bent on destroying my family, you should remember that it would be easy for me to return the favor.” She turns again, kissing Eddie on the cheek in greeting and then she walks towards the car without looking back. She knows that Turner is gaping after her just like she wants him to. Then, with the door handle in her hand she turns back after all. Giving Turner an unforgiving glare, she says, “Oh, and Jimmy? I would like to visit my husband. See to that, will you?”

With that said she and the guys get into the car and drive off.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always comments and kudos are greatly appreciated and encouraged.
> 
> Thank you for reading :*


	6. Six

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They finally see each other again.

“Eddie, pull over,” Beth snaps when they are just around the corner.

“What? Why?” he asks, side-eyeing her confusedly.

“Pull over. Now!” she cries and even though he still looks slightly baffled he does as he is told. Even before the car stops completely, Beth has released her seat belt and pushed open the door, stepping outside as soon as the car stills. She runs a couple of steps until she finds a small bush that covers her and she sicks up the formerly delicious cookie into the gutter. Damn it, her nerves have seen better days. While she wipes cold sweat from her forehead, she thinks wistfully of the days when guns were pointed at her and she didn’t even blink an eye. She’s probably getting old. She’s almost 46 now, her nerves aren’t what they used to be. That must be it, she thinks and walks back to the car, joining the three very concerned men that have been waiting for her to finish hurling in the street.

“You okay, boss,” asks Trigger. She smiles at him wanly, secretly pleased with the nickname though.

“Yes, I’m fine,” she answers.

“You pregnant?” asks Eddie and she rolls her eyes at him.

“No, I’m certainly not pregnant,” she snaps, scowling at him, “This was just a Grey’s Anatomy moment.”

“A what?” he asks frowning.

“Ask Carlos, he can explain that to you.”

Eddie doesn’t answer but sets the car into Drive and they speed off. 

“We could have been there earlier, but when we realized where you were, we thought we should wait for Turner to arrive first. Figured that was your plan. So, we waited outside for him to come home,” explains Eddie after a couple of minutes of silence.

“Your timing was perfect,” she says and smiles at him approvingly, “Thank you. And it was great that you brought the guys. Should have been a nice shock for Douglas to see just what kind of crowd his husband is pissing off.” She winks at the boys on the backseat in the rearview mirror.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” says Cisco, grinning smugly, “Do you want to say I look scary?” She snorts.

“No, honey, you look beautiful,” she chuckles and they all laugh. Emotionally, she feels so much better now that she has finally done something to clear this whole mess up. It feels liberating to finally be doing something and she is looking forward to her update from Carlos tomorrow. But physically, she still feels kind of queasy. 

They drive for a while and she keeps battling with the nausea which comes and goes in waves. Comprehension begins to dawn on her after a right turn that Eddie takes a little too vigorously and she has to yell at him to stop the car again. This time she is out of the car even faster and hurls nothing but green goo into the rubbish bin in front of a lovely, small café, not caring who sees her. 

Her eyes water, but after her crying session at the Turner residence, there isn’t much mascara left to be smudged and she just wipes the tears away when she straightens up. She catches the eye of a disgusted customer who has pushes his piece of cake from him across the table, his appetite apparently spoiled. She smiles at him unapologetically because how could she be sorry now? She knows what this means. And she is in for some serious coleslaw, right now. She makes her way back to the car and gets in.

“Another ‘Grey’s Anatomy moment’?” Eddies asks with a suspiciously raised eyebrow as soon as she has shut the door.

“No,” she breathes with a shy smile on her face, “It seems I’m pregnant after all.”

“What?” all three of them call out at once. She just shrugs and smiles a little more widely.

“Seems that way.”

“Finally, some good news,” Eddie says jubilantly and bends over to hug her.

“Get off me! I stink of vomit,” she cries, pushing him away swiftly and they all erupt into laughter again.

“Well, let’s get some coleslaw in you,” Eddie says and winks at her cheekily. She throws her head back and laughs carefree and from the depth of her belly for the first time in ages. 

Another baby. How is that even possible? Her hand comes to rest on her stomach and she smiles into the distance. Rio that cheeky bastard, she thinks as she mentally bids farewell to all sexual positions that have her on top because even though her heart could burst with love right now, this is going to be her last child. And she would bet all her belongings on it being a boy. Because doesn’t Rio always get what he wants in the end?

 

***

 

For a couple of days everything is fine. Everyone who hears of the pregnancy is delighted. Annie who is still hormonal from having just given birth to little Leo cries for about an hour with both Beth and Eddie fussing over her frantically.

Danny’s ears turn a vivid pink, when she tells him.

“Ew, Mum,” he says not meeting her eyes, “You and Rio are so gross.” But he hugs her tightly and that tells her everything that she needs to know. 

Jane asks her if pregnancy is the way she plans to solve every problem that she has with Rio and the juice that she has been sipping nearly shoots out of her nose from how hard she has to laugh. She congratulates her then and tells her how happy she is to have a new brother or sister.

Mary and Emma squeal with delight when she tells them. 

“Can I babysit him or her when you and Rio want to go out?” Emma asks.

“You will be my first choice,” Beth answers and kisses her cheek.

Kenny says, “I’m so glad for sex ed with Mr. Garrison right about now, because you obviously have no idea what you’re talking about.” 

They both laugh and it is such a great feeling they finally have something to look forward to, that at least one thing is going right, however unplanned it might have been.

Carlos’s eyes are suspiciously bright when she tells him the next day, when they meet for her briefing. As it turns out, at the moment they are mostly interrogating a whole lot of different people to get more information on Luciana. They have had a few leads but nothing has really panned out so far. All in all, their talk is somewhat sobering. 

“I want to be there for the next interrogation,” she says determinately. He immediately frowns at her and shakes his head.

“No,” he says, “These interrogations aren’t pretty. You don’t have to see that.” Beth knows that, of course, she has seen Eddie’s bruised knuckles when he drove her home from Baltimore.

“Well, I should hope they aren’t pretty. I would have assumed that such delicate information isn’t commonly exchanged over tea and biscuits.” She raises an eyebrow at him. But he doesn’t raise to her attempt at humor, scowling at her instead.

“No, Beth. You shouldn’t be there, especially not in your state.” She rolls her eyes at him. Not that again.

“Need I remind you that…” but she never gets to finish her sentence, because he cuts her off.

“Yeah, yeah, I know how very hard pregnant women have had it throughout history. But you’re my boss’s wife, for Christ’s sake. If anything happens to you or the baby he’ll have my balls.”

“He shouldn’t have gotten himself arrested then. Let him be my problem. I will be there. And that is the end of that.” She adds when he is about to argue again. 

“You’re such a stubborn bi…” But this time she cuts him off, “Excuse me? Were you just about to call me a bitch?” She glares at him and finally the spell is broken and he chuckles lightly.

“Respectfully so,” he says, giving her a cheeky grin and pulling her into a quick hug. “I’m happy for you,” he whispers, “Rio is going to be thrilled. He has been gnawing my ear off about a son and heir.” They both laugh. Her good mood prevails even after their talk, because even though they haven’t made much progress, the thought of being involved, of actually doing something to get Rio out, is enormously liberating. 

On Monday Aldrin calls with good news. Beth will finally be allowed to visit Rio the next day. 

“I don’t know what you have done, Mrs. Medina, and I probably don’t want to know, but it definitely worked. Turner has personally seen to it that Rio is now cleared for visits,” he says.

“I just had a friendly conversation with him is all,” she says innocently, glad that Aldrin cannot see her face through the phone. He goes on to tell her when she has to be where the next day and quickly instructs her on some basic dos and don’ts in federal prison.

 

***

 

The next day she manages the one-and-half-hour-long drive to the prison with only two stops. First to vomit her breakfast back into the botany and then to pick up some coleslaw and wolf it down. What is it with her and the morning sickness? Every fucking time. Then again, she could have stopped making babies at some point. No one has forced her to, but no one has really asked her either. Especially with the last two. But she isn’t complaining. She is giddy with it actually. She cannot wait to tell Rio. Just the thought of his face makes her foot press down onto the accelerator on its own to get to him faster.

When she sees him, however, the good mood she has been in for the last couple of days evaporates. He looks rough to say the least. Sitting behind the acrylic glass as if in a bad movie. She hasn’t pictured it to be like that. She has thought a little more Orange Is The New Black, a little less Dead Man Walking. But the latter it is. Then again, she is certainly glad it isn’t Silence of The Lambs. 

Her breath hitches when she gets a first good look at him while sitting down. His hair is shorter than the last time she has seen him. He is ghostly pale, the tattoo on his neck standing out starkly, dark circles under his eyes from lack of sleep. At least she assumes that there is a second dark circle under the left eye that is badly bruised, shimmering in every color of the rainbow, swollen nearly shut. Basically, the whole left side of his face is bruised and swollen, his lip is split and the smirk he gives her looks very painful. She grabs the receiver from the wall and speaks, laying her hand flat against the glass, just like in the movies.

“Oh my god, Rio, what happened to you?” she cries.

“Elizabeth,” he almost whispers, giving her a smoldering look. He lays his hand against the glass, against her hand. She imagines, she can almost feel his hand.

“Rio,” she sobs, dissolving into tears, unable to keep her emotions in check. Fucking hormones.

“Don’t cry, mamma,” he tries to sooth her, “I’m fine. I’m fine now that you’re here.” They look at each other. Rio’s smirk has been replaced by a warm, loving smile, while he watches Beth cry and try to pull herself together. 

“I’m sorry,” she says.

“No, don’t be.” The longer he watches her the more destitute and closer to tears he looks himself. This is not how this is supposed to go, Beth thinks. She is supposed to cheer him up, not bring him down. But the wave of emotions that surges through her is more powerful and devastating than she could ever have anticipated. 

“I swore to myself I wouldn’t cry,” she mumbles, “I just… I’m sorry… I didn’t think you’d look like this.”

“It’s nothing, Elizabeth. I’m gonna be okay.”

“What happened?”

“Just got into a little fight, nothing important,” he tries to brush it off. He is trying to make her feel better, when it should be the other way around. 

“Nothing important? It doesn’t look like nothing,” she snaps. He just gives her a sad smile and she is almost sure that he won’t answer, when he says.

“What do you want me to say?” She sobs again then. This is not going the way she has planned this, she thinks again. She has wanted to be strong for him. She has wanted to reassure him that she is handling it. And now she is melting down in front of him.

“I’m sorry,” she says, “I’m sorry.” He still smiles sadly.

“Let’s talk about something a little more cheerful, Mrs. Medina,” he says and smirks at her. She bursts out laughing through her tears, making a weird half way sound between a laugh and a sob, that sets him up laughing as well. When they have calmed down, they just look at one another for a while.

“I’m sorry,” she says finally for the umpteenth time, “I needed to get creative. Are you mad?” His eyes flick down shortly, before he looks at her again, eyes almost completely black.

“Nah, not at you,” he whispers and winks at her, obviously painfully because he flinches slightly. “At me though, for missing the wedding night.” Heat flares up in her lower belly and her chest constricts. God, she misses him. 

“We’ll have plenty of time for that, when you’re out.” She tries to sound optimistic.

“I won’t be doing much else than you for a while,” he drawls quietly. She chuckles.

“God, I miss you,” she voices her earlier thoughts. 

“I’m sorry. I’m such a dick for putting you through this.” She shrugs and gives him a sad smile. There is nothing much they can do besides smiling in order to convey any kind of intimacy. Even though she craves to touch him. More so now, that she can see him in front of her. 

“We’re getting on. It’s hard. We miss you, but we all stick together. We’re going to survive, so don’t worry about us.” 

“I know you, mamma! I know I don’t have to worry about you. You told me, after one of your visits to Luciana, that you would stick with me if I ever got arrested and that you would get by. So, I trust you.”

“I love you,” she murmurs.

“I love you, Elizabeth Medina,” he answers, voice thick with emotion. She stirs the conversation into saver waters then, telling him about what she and the kids have been doing. She leaves out the parts where they have been struggling. She wants to tell him that they are working on getting him out, but Aldrin has told her in no uncertain terms that that is the worst thing she could possibly do, so she keeps her mouth shut about it. She doesn’t tell him about the baby. From the way he is trying so hard to reassure her that he is fine, she can tell that he really isn’t. She guesses that he can tell the same about her, when he hears her stories of all of them sticking together. She doesn’t want to make this harder on him by telling him what he is missing. So, she keeps quiet. Maybe they’re lucky and he will be out soon enough so that he doesn’t miss anything. Also, a baby would be just one more thing that Turner could hold over his head if he ever gets wind of it. 

She is nowhere near ready to leave him again when the guard tells them to wrap it up and she immediately dissolves into tears again. She desperately wipes at her face to get rid of them. 

“I’m so sorry,” she whimpers, “I wanted to be strong for you. I wanted you to know that you don’t have to worry about us.” His eyes brim with tears as well and he is fighting for composure.

“Don’t be sorry, baby! I know that you are being strong. I know that there is no room for your feelings out there. It’s okay when you cry here,” he says, trying to reassure her. “I will be with you again before you even know it.”

“I’ll be back next week,” she sobs.

“I know. Gives me something to look forward to.” He gives her another one of his sad smiles.

“Don’t do anything stupid, will you? Promise me,” she says urgently, when the guard starts making his way towards Rio.

“I won’t, I promise.” He is hauled out of his chair then. Now that he is upright his hands are cuffed to a chain around his ankles and he is led away. He turns around one last time and mouths the words “I love you!” towards her. She remains sitting in her chair for a couple of moments, trying to get her bearings. When she has calmed down, she walks back to her car and drives back. She feels numb, devastated. It is as if a part of her has died seeing him there. She feels similar to the way she felt when she found out that he has been arrested. Again, she finds herself asking, how are we supposed to survive this? 

She drives home on autopilot, barely registering the road or anything on it. She doesn’t know how fast she is going or if she is even taking the right turns, she doesn’t hear the music on the radio. She is only shaken out of her haze, when she is almost home, driving by Fine and Frugal. Suddenly, the image of Turner’s smug grin flashes before her inner eye and the fog is replaced by a fresh and potent wave of pure hatred that floods through her system. 

She is glad to see a couple of cars parked in front of her house. She can use the company. When she gets inside there are more people there than she has anticipated. Apart from her kids, Annie and Eddie plus kids and Carlos together with his family, there is also Camilla and most of Rio’s boys. They all hug her, apparently aware of how hard this visit must have been on her. When she walks into the kitchen, there is a huge pot of some rich, spicy stew on the cooker and she isn’t surprised that it warms her from the inside almost like a glass of good bourbon would have. 

“I still remember how hard the first few times were that I visited Sid,” says Camilla as a means of explanation for their presence.  
“Thank you,” she whispers through a fresh round of tears. 

Trigger, Cisco and Bullit quickly wolf down their bowl of stew before they make their excuses. Each hugging her in turn. “See you later, boss,” says Trigger. She raises a confused eyebrow at him, then quickly looks over at Carlos who just nods. 

It takes another hour and a half, before Beth is finally alone with Carlos and Eddie. “Spill,” she says as soon as she has closed the door behind Sofia and Matteo. 

“We’ve gotten our hands on a rat,” says Eddie.

“Meaning?”

“One of Georgie’s guys has been ratting to the police, so he might have some information for us,” he explains. Beth doesn’t understand.  
“Georgie?” she asks.

“They guy Rio has been dealing with when he got taken in,” Carlos supplies. She nods.

“Finally,” she says and then adds, “Let me quickly get changed.” She is off to her bedroom and changes into the hottest mamma outfit she can find. She quickly redoes her makeup and straightens up her hair with a couple of bobby pins. When she walks back into the living room Eddie and Carlos gape at her.

“This is not a red-carpet event,” says Carlos, incredulous.

“Thank you for remining me,” she answers acidly, “I just thought it wouldn’t hurt for him to underestimate me.” He nods as comprehension begins to dawn on him. They make their way out of the house towards the car, when a thought crosses Beth’s mind.

“Just a sec,” she says and makes her way into the garage. She can hear Carlos’s exasperated sigh behind her as she leaves them behind, but she doesn’t care at the moment. Once in the garage she rummages between the boxes of the kids’ stuff until she finds what she is looking for. She makes her way outside with Jane’s barely used, dusty baseball bat in her right hand. The boys have already gotten in the car and when she gets into it, Carlos snorts at the sight of the bat.

“What?” she snaps, “I’m certainly not going to hit him with my bare hands like a cave man.” She glares at both of them.

“You’re not going to hit him at all,” Carlos says.

“You know what really pisses me off, Carlos?” she says conversationally but she is sure that he can hear the edge in her voice.

“Do tell,” he mocks, rolling his eyes at her.

“That you are such a patronizing fucking spoil sport,” she spits. Eddie releases a startled laugh before he is able to stifle it when Carlos throws him a glare. 

“I have just returned from visiting my husband in fucking prison. I do get to break something today and it ain’t my manicure. Hence the bat.”

“Yes, you can smash a couple of plates or something when we’re finished but I’m not letting you near him,” Carlos says, still not taking her completely seriously, as he pulls out of the drive way. 

“Well, it’s your choice, honey,” she says sickly sweet, “I’m going to smash someone’s face in tonight and I don’t care if it’s his or yours.” She gives him a sweet smile.

“Fine, then,” he grunts, “Suit yourself.”

“Thank you,” she answers and leans back in her seat. When she takes a look into the rearview mirror she can tell that Eddie is impressed with her. The rest of the drive goes by without any of them saying another word. She runs her hands along the smooth surface of the bat that is resting between her legs. Anticipation is making her skin tingle. She is scared and yet she cannot wait to swing it.

It is a pretty long drive, to a warehouse well out of town that Beth has never been to. With every passing minute she gets more and more nervous. But after her little butt of heads with Carlos only a couple of moments ago there is no backing down now.

When they pull up in front of the warehouse her hands are clammy and her heart is racing. She gets out of the car, gripping the bat so hard her knuckles turn white. By the look that Eddie gives her she knows that he knows. But it’s okay, he won’t give her shit about it. 

The scene that meets her in the warehouse is pretty much what she has expected from watching way too many shitty Gangster movies. The warehouse is almost empty, there is basically just a chair with a guy tied to it in the middle of it. Two guys are standing a little to the side, watching over him. They raise their hands in greeting when they walk by them. Carlos holds open a door that leads into a small office space and she goes inside. Trigger and Cisco await them inside and they brief them on what they have already been able to find out, which isn’t much. 

When Beth starts questioning him, he laughs at her. Bob is his name. What kind of mundane name is Bob? If this guy had any self-respect he would have gotten himself a new name. And the way he is sitting in front of her, mocking her, not taking her at all seriously, makes her so angry all of a sudden. She embraces it, pictures Turner’s stupid face and her husband’s face that has been badly bruised by some unspeakable person, she pictures her heartbroken kids and the little baby inside of her that is running the risk of not being welcomed into the world by its father, and that is when she swings the bat and brings it back against his shoulder with all her might.

What she has not anticipated is how the impact would hurt her. The shock of the impact travels up her arms, she can feel it in her shoulders, it’s as if her arms are about to pop out of the sockets, she can feel the pull in her muscles that are trying to absorb it. 

“Ow, fucking ow,” she wines and Bob laughs.

“That’s what I should be saying.”

“Yes, well, I know that,” she snaps, “Just give me a little time and you will.” He is still chuckling and she is still pissed as hell. With the next swing she lets the bat do most of the work, she doesn’t tense up and this time it doesn’t hurt as badly. Bob, however, still isn’t impressed.

“Spread your legs a little,” says a voice behind her. It’s Carlos and when she turns around he also doesn’t look very impressed with her. Apparently, he is still pissed that she snapped at him in the car. It is also a little embarrassing because the way she’s been handling this situation so far, she is probably going to break a nail after all. But she is grateful that he stands by her, even though he still hates the idea of her taking over the interrogations. She does as she is told and this time Bob feels it.

“Ow, fucking ow,” he imitates her, as the bat connect with his shoulder for the third time. If he still has time to mock her though, it cannot be that bad, so she immediately swings a fourth time and hits him straight in the face. From there the interrogation runs smoothly. Once she gets the hang of it, she beats the crap out of Bob, just like she has intended to. And even though she feels better, when he spits one of his front teeth onto the floor, when he starts to beg her to stop, when he apologizes for laughing at her earlier, in the end he cannot tell them anything they don’t already know. 

They are going to hand him over to Georgie who has agreed to let them have their way with him before he is going to kill him, because snitches end up in ditches. 

“I’m sorry, Bob,” she says to the half unconscious man when she is about to leave.

“Least you were nice to look at while you were at it,” he slurs. 

“I’ll tell Georgie to make it quick,” she says and squeezes his shoulder. He flinches but gives her a smile through his swollen face.

“’M not gonna tell him about the beginning,” he takes a ragged breath, “’M gonna tell him you were fierce.” He knows that he has to die and that his death is on him and him alone. 

“Thank you!” She leaves Bob behind and makes it to the bathroom where she washes up, before Eddie drives her home. 

“Only you could beat a man to pulp and then have him thank you for it afterwards,” he says when they stop at a red light. They both burst out laughing and cannot reign it in even when their eyes begin to water. A car behind them honks when Eddie doesn’t pay attention to the traffic light and a line begins to form behind them.

She can feel every muscle in her upper body and knows that she is going to be sore in the morning. On the other hand, she is going to sleep like a baby tonight. She is looking forward to nice hot bath when they pull up in front of the house and Eddie suddenly steps onto the break roughly.

“Ow,” she screeches, “What is up with you?”

“Look,” he answers.

There is a police car parked in front of her house. Her heart drops, taking up residence somewhere in the region of her knees.

“Fuck,” she whispers explosively, “Fuck, fuck, fuck!”

“I’m going in with you!”

“No,” she says, “You stay out of this. Go home! I haven’t seen you since yesterday, you feel me?” He chuckles.

“Yes, boss!” He winks at her when she gets out of the car and walks to her very possible doom.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you aren't disappointed with their first encounter after the arrest. But he is in prison, so there never was going to be much more than talking going to happen.
> 
> Kudos and comment are, as always, very welcome.
> 
> Oh, and one quick thing: In my timeline Beth is 46 having married Dean at 19, broken up with him around 39 and having had Mary at 40. Just so you know.


	7. Seven

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Help comes from an unexpected source.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry it took me so long to update again.
> 
> It's just Season 2 left me kind of dissatisfied and I had to digest that first. I mean, how dare they leave us with practically the same ending as last season? And how are they supposed to come back from that? Well, there is nothing to be done but waiting...

It is funny how such a tiny back and forth can lift your mind off something dreadful. And then again it isn’t funny, how easily said dreadful thing comes back, kicking you in the teeth. She waits for Eddie to drive off, takes a deep breath and then squares her shoulders before she walks towards the house. The lights inside are on, but it seems quiet. The kids must already be asleep.

“Beth,” a voice to her left says and she nearly jumps out of her skin. Her head snaps around so fast, she nearly gives herself whiplash. But no sound escapes her. So, maybe she does still have such a thing as a poker face.

“Stan,” she says, letting out a relieved breath when she recognizes the person who has apparently been sitting on her porch. “What are you doing here?” He walks out of the shadows and into the small beam of light that shines through the window. Glancing through it, Beth can see Jane lying curled up on the sofa, the TV still running.

“I need to speak with you,” he says calmly and gives her a slow, sad smile.

“Okay,” she says, “Do you want to come inside?”

“Yes, that would be best. Wouldn’t want to be overheard by the neighbors.” She fumbles with her keys a little nervously, before she manages to open the door. As soon as she steps inside, she is greeted by a bleary-eyed Jane who has obviously been roused by the sound of the key turning in the lock.

“Uncle Stan,” she exclaims tiredly, but no less happily.

“Jane,” he says, “You’re all grown up.” Jane makes her way towards her mother and Stan and quickly hugs each of them.

“You haven’t been around much,” Jane answers calmly. Stan shakes his head sadly.

“No, I haven’t.” They stand together in the small foyer for a couple of seconds before Jane hugs them again and wishes them a good night.

Beth makes her way to the kitchen and gets the coffee maker going. “So, what do you want to talk about?” she inquires a little icily. Her relieve at finding Stan on her porch has vanished giving way to suspicion. Sure, Stan is a friend of the family, has been family for a long time, but not recently. It would have been such a Turner move to send him to bring her bad news, maybe even to send him to arrest her. He is here in his uniform, his police car is parked in her drive way so apparently, he is on duty.

“Georgie Danes is a business partner of Rio’s, isn’t he?” She thinks of what she has just done, beat up one of Georgie’s boys and left him to be dealt with by Georgie himself. How exactly is she supposed to answer that without incriminating her husband, herself, her family? She opts for a simple shrug of her shoulder.

“Danes also works together with Grant McKee,” Stan continues. Beth rakes her brain, but for the life of her she cannot recall ever having heard that name. So, she shrugs yet again.

“McKee is based in Cleveland. One of his boys is in good contact with the police. Has a couple of them on his payroll.” Beth raises an eyebrow at Stan, unsure of why exactly he is telling her this.

“Why are you telling me this?” she voices her thoughts, her mind is racing and she uses the coffee maker as an excuse to turn her back to Stan to get a chance to compose herself. She takes out a cup and fills it, then, when she is sure that her face is perfectly blank, she turns back to him and sets the cup down in front of him.

“Someone in our department is leaking information,” Stan proceeds. “I’m investigating exactly who that is and I’m this close to solve the case.” He makes a gesture with his hand, showing her a small space between his thumb and index finger to underline what he is saying.

“Good for you,” Beth says, genuinely pleased for Stan’s success, but still puzzled about his motif. “But why are you telling _me_ this?”

“Because I need one last piece of information to leak before I take them down,” he answers, “And it cannot fall back on me.” Beth gives him a puzzled look.

“I’m not quite following you, Stan, I’m sorry.”

“Have Danes introduce you to McKee. Get to know his guy, the one who is talking to the police, and find out where the Feds have hidden the witness.” He looks her straight in the eye as he delivers the information that she needs to get Rio out.

“I… what?” she stammers.

“Turner doesn’t have much on Rio, besides the witness. When the witness is gone, he will have to let him go. You can speak to McKee’s guy, get to the witness and arrange for her to be unable to testify,” he suggests. She looks at him disbelievingly.

“Are you telling me to off her?” she asks incredulously.

“No, Beth. I’m coming to you because I hope that I can trust you not to hurt her. This isn’t her fault. She has a nasty drug habit and Turner has threatened to take away her kids if she doesn’t testify.”

“Why are you telling me this?” she asks for the third time.

“Because Turner is playing dirty. She is an unreliable witness for she is highly impressionable, but he is trying to cover that up. He uses her against Rio, he puts all kinds of ideas in her head and she goes along with it because she is shit scared to lose her children. At the same time, he is making her up to be a reliable witness so that her testimony will hold up in court.” Beth rubs her hands through her face. She isn’t really surprised by what she is hearing about Turner. It pretty much coincides with her own conclusions on Turner’s tactics. She has had an inkling from pretty much the first day that Turner is trying to get Rio convicted on skimpy evidence. She doesn’t really know why he is so desperate to get him locked up for good, but she knew right from the start that he doesn’t have a lot to go on.

She is, however, surprised that Stan is giving this sort of information up to her. So, she repeats her question yet again. This time it is Stan’s turn to shrug.

“It’s not right, what he’s doing.” But Beth knows that isn’t all of it so, she raises a disbelieving eyebrow at him. “It’s Ruby,” he says and looks down at his hands guiltily. “She is miserable. She needs you and I have been too caught up in my own dreams to notice that my wife is suffering.” Beth gives him a sympathetic look.

“Oh Stan,” she replies softly, “You know I love Ruby like a sister. Not a day goes by that I don’t think of her. I catch myself thinking that I need to tell her this or that and then it hits me like a freight train that she has told me in no uncertain terms that she wants to keep her distance.” She remembers it as if it was yesterday, when Ruby walked into the kitchen of her old house, just shortly after she and Stan had made up after the kidney debacle. She told her that she loved them, Beth and Annie, that she wished it could be different, but that Stan was her soulmate and that she would do everything for him, even when it meant that she had to keep her distance from her two best friends who had, unfortunately, both fallen in love with gangsters. Even with her out of business the risk for Stan was still too great for her to take and ultimately, Beth had understood her. They had cried together, hugged each other and then Beth told her that Ruby had to do what was best for her family and that if that meant she had to keep her distance, she wouldn’t make that hard on her. She told Ruby that her door would always be open for her to return, but their contact had been reduced drastically after that day.

“I know,” he says. “She has been done everything to ensure that I didn’t get into a conflict at work and I’m so grateful to her for that. But I see what it has taken out of her. She is unhappy. And I don’t know, maybe I’m an idiot for thinking it, but maybe this is what Rio needs to turn over a new leaf.”

“Flip his game,” Beth mutters.

“You need to understand, Beth. The next time Turner gets his hands on him, he is going away for good. I can help you get him out now, I won’t be able to help again. He needs to think about what he wants to do real hard when he gets out.” Beth nods. She has thought the same thing. The thought of Rio getting out and taking up where he left off is ridiculous. This must have taught him something. Her hand makes its way to her stomach. He will soon have two children, four stepchildren and a wife that count on him. He needs to think about what he wants to leave them with.

“Thank you, Stan,” she says. He shrugs and gives her a wan smile.

“No need to thank me really,” he says, “It’s not as if I’m being selfless here. I just want my wife back.” That is when it hits her, this man in front of her is going to give her her husband and best friends back. She releases a relieved bubble of laughter.

“Stan, I don’t care if you’re being selfish when you’re bringing me Rio and Ruby back.” She steps towards him and hugs him tightly.

“No, I mean it. Nothing of this can fall back on me. I have planned all this out and you are going to do all the work.” She laughs again. Unbelievable, how he is presenting her a plan on a silver platter and is still beating himself up about not doing enough.

“You don’t need to throw yourself under the bus to help,” she declares and then turns around and tops up his coffee. They talk strategy for a couple of more minutes and then Stan excuses himself for he is on duty and needs to get back with pizza before anyone at the station expects anything. They hug again one last time and Beth tells him to send Ruby her love.

The moment Stan is out of sight she calls Eddie to let him know that she has handled the situation and that he can stop worrying about her. Then she calls Carlos.

“I need to talk to you, asap,” she says as soon as he picks up.

“Tonight?” he asks and she can hear the strain in his voice. He must be dead tired and even though she is bursting with energy at the information she has obtained she tells him to go home, get some sleep and come over as soon as he has the time.

“You know, sometimes it is so much nicer working for you than working for Rio,” he announces and chuckles.

“Really? I thought I was getting on your nerves with my need to know everything and my amateur interrogation skills,” she quips.

“You do,” he answers, “But you also let me sleep when I really need it.”

“You’re no good to me half asleep. Get some rest, see you tomorrow,” she says and hangs up.

She knows that she should go to bed. It is late and if she doesn’t sleep soon she is going to regret it tomorrow. But she is too wound up, so she instead of the bedroom, she heads into the bathroom and pulls herself a bath.

* * *

 

Just like she has predicted the night before, she is dead tired when the alarm goes off the next morning. But as soon as the memories come crashing back, she jumps out of bed and starts her morning routine. The prospect of a real plan lifts her mood substantially and the kids pick up on it immediately.

“Is Rio coming home?” Jane asks over blueberry pancakes when the others aren’t listening.

“No, not yet,” Beth whispers back, “But we might be getting somewhere.” Jane releases a relieved breath, but Beth indicates for her to keep it quiet with one finger to her lips.

By the time that the children are getting ready to leave the house, her mobile beeps with a message from Carlos saying that he is going to be there soon. With nothing better to do and full of restless energy, Beth sets to work on a new stack of pancakes for the boys.

Carlos and Eddie are delighted to see their respective plates filled with a large pile of pancakes when they make it into the kitchen.

“Eat up,” she says lightly and they both start devouring their breakfast immediately.

“Mmmh,” Eddie groans at the first bite, “Rio would never make us pancakes. Maybe it’s not such a good idea to get him out after all.” Beth and Carlos’s startled laughter is a testament to how much the general mood has lifted. Beth hasn’t told them anything yet, but they know her well enough that they can tell that she has got something up her sleeve that might just turn the situation around.

“Okay, _boss_ , spit it out,” Carlos says mockingly, when he has almost finished his plate. Beth nods and leans back on her chair, taking in both men that have become so dear to her.

“I need to ask you something,” she begins. They both shrug their shoulders in a way that prompts her to keep going.

“Are we going legit?” she asks straight to the point. Their faces are equal masks of surprise and she would have laughed had she not been so strung tight with anticipation. Slowly Eddie’s surprise morphs into a frown.

“I don’t feel like my opinion counts for anything in this respect,” he says slowly. Carlos remains quiet, observing how the situation is playing out between her and Eddie.

“I’m asking for your opinion, am I not?” she replies somewhat curtly. He shrugs dismissively.

“You are Rio’s closest confidants. Your opinion matters to him and it matters to me. So, I am asking you, are we going legit?” Eddie’s frown just deepens, it is as if she has offended him somehow.

“The only reason we’re close is because I’m married to his sister-in-law,” he says tersely. “Don’t think I don’t know that he would have rather liked to get rid of me when I got myself shot seven years ago. The only reason he didn’t was because by the time he had the chance you were already pregnant and would have had an aneurysm had he offed your sister’s boyfriend.” Beth shakes her head, stunned by his sudden outburst. “Don’t kid yourself, Beth,” he continues angrily, “The moment Annie gets tired of me, which, let’s be honest here, could happen any moment, I’m out and I’ll be lucky if I walk out alive. He still has me doing all the shit jobs because he doesn’t trust me. I’m not stupid. The only reason I’m here is that I managed to fall in love with the right girl and was lucky enough for her to reciprocate my feelings.” Beth and Carlos share a stunned glance. From what she can see, Carlos is just as surprised by his rant as she is.

“Stop whining you great baby,” she snaps, taking a breath and squaring her shoulders. “Let me rephrase then. You are _my_ closest confidants and I love both of you like you’re my family. I trust you with my life and with the lives of my children. So, as my husband is currently residing in federal prison, I’m asking you, are we going legit?” Eddie is still looking at her angrily, about to snap back and get into an argument with her, when suddenly Carlos’s calm voice sounds.

“Yes,” he says quietly. Eddie’s head whips around, now fixing Carlos with an angry glare.

“How can you say that? Rio is going to have our balls when he comes out and we have just decided this without him,” he barks. Carlos breathes deeply once, twice then turns to Eddie.

“You’re not completely wrong in what you just said,” he begins, “But you’re dead wrong when it comes to Rio’s reasoning. Yes, he would have liked to off you seven years ago and he didn’t because of Beth and Annie. And you’re right that he has kept you out to a certain extent, but not because he still doesn’t trust you, but because he is protecting you. He gives you the shit jobs because they are less dangerous and he is protecting his family. Don’t you think that he would have liked to do some of the jobs he has given you himself? Like all those trips to the home improvement store when they moved in here?” Eddie looks away from Carlos, crossing his arms before his chest and scowling down at his empty plate, digesting what he has just heard. Carlos doesn’t push him and turns to Beth instead.

“Yes, we are going legit,” he says. She nods, still stunned by what has just played out in front of her. “Rio has been working on going legit for a while now. He has planned to cut all ties in about a year or two.” She gasps at the revelation; her head is spinning. Why is she only hearing this now? It stings how Rio has kept things from her, no matter if it was to protect her.

“That is why Turner is so desperate to lock Rio up, isn’t it?” Beth breathes. Carlos look at her earnestly for a couple of seconds before he nods.

“Okay,” she says, unsure how to continue. “Eddie?” It takes a few moments before he tears his eyes away from where he is still scowling at his plate.

“Do you want to go legit?” she asks gently.

“I have wanted nothing more from the moment I first held Ava,” he whispers flatly. They fall into perplexed silence. All three of them digesting the weight of what they have just decided.

“Well, now would be the time to tell us, what you want to do, boss,” Carlos says kindly. Still it takes a couple of minutes before she has digested the situation well enough to tell them about Stan.

They talk strategy for what feels like hours, going through every detail of the plan that they are making, simultaneously making up plan B and C to be covered for every eventuality.

“But how are we going to get Georgie to introduce us to McKee?” Beth asks at some point.

“Well, with Rio gone there is going to be a vacuum in Detroit. Somebody has to take over. That could be Georgie,” Carlos answers and Beth knows immediately that this isn’t a new idea.

“You have talked about this before, haven’t you?” she says.

“Yes,” is all he says.

By midday they have deducted a proper plan, but when Carlos and Eddie make to leave the range of their breakfast conversation is still weighing heavily on them. She pulls Carlos into a hug and thanks him, then lets him go first before she turns to Eddie. She hugs him as well.

“I love you, Eddie,” she says. “You’re the best husband my sister could have ever found. I’m so glad she has you. And as soon as my idiot of a husband is out I’m going to teach him a lesson on how to treat your family.” Eddie gives her a sad smile and kisses her on the cheek before he leaves as well.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone who has stuck with this story so far. I'd like to stress again that I have not abandoned it but that I just need longer to finish it than I would have liked.
> 
> All your comments and kudos, however, are the best motivation there is.
> 
> So, thank you again. I hope you enjoyed the chapter.


	8. Eight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Beth proceeds to put their plan into action.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Enjoy.

The next time Beth goes to see Rio, it goes at least a little better than the last time. This time she doesn’t cry in front of him. It is only after she leaves the prison that she spends half an hour crying in the front seat of Rio’s car, before she is able to compose herself and make the drive home.

Rio looks a little better than the last time. The swelling of his eye has gone down to a certain degree, though it still looks painful. There is something about healing bruises that makes them look even worse than when they are fresh. The circles under his eyes are still as dark as they have been last week. He has several days’ worth of stubble on his face and his hair has grown out longer than Beth has ever seen it.

Normally, he is so keen to never miss a barber’s appointment and now he just looks sad. It kills her to see him like that. So defeated. Just like her babies at home. How has she let it come to this? Why has she never inquired into what Rio is doing? Why has she let all this just run by her?

“Hey,” she says as soon as she has sat down and taken the receiver. Her hand is at the plexiglass immediately and Rio reciprocates the gesture.

“Elizabeth,” he purrs and his voice is pure sex. A powerful surge of arousal crashes through her body, her breath catches in her throat and she can feel herself flushing. He knows her well enough to notice and the smirk that appears on his face does definitely not help to calm herself down.

“God, I miss you,” she breathes.

“I bet you do,” he answers, smirking even more widely.

“How have you been doing?” she asks, but he just shrugs and gives a minute shake of his head, indicating clearly that he doesn’t want to talk about himself.

“Tell me about home,” he says instead. “How are the kids doing?” Tears rush to her eyes immediately, but she manages to blink them back.

“They miss you, but they get by,” she answers. But he isn’t satisfied and juts out his chin, urging her to continue. When she doesn’t say anything for a couple of minutes, because she is fighting to keep her composure, he says, “Come on, tell me more. You don’t have to protect me. The less you tell me the worse are the things I imagine happening at home.”

“Well, Kenny offers to come home about twice a week, but I’ve managed to keep him at school so far,” she begins and from the smile on his face, she can tell that he is glad to hear some actual news.

“Jane and Marcus broke up, but it turns out our little girl turned into one fierce young woman,” she continues with obvious pride in her voice.

“She takes after her mamma,” he says just as proudly, looking at her with warm, adoring eyes. She snorts because without knowing it he has repeated exactly what Jane had said during their conversation on the phone.

“Danny had some problems in school and we got into a pretty rough fight, but we made up and we have been better since then. He even lets me kiss him good night most nights. He hasn’t let me hug and kiss him for, I don’t know, two years or so?” She smiles at him happily, because even though she is anything but at the moment, it is nice and she has missed hugging him.

“You’ve got to take your wins where they come,” he comments, still smiling warmly.

“Sure do.” And they both laugh quietly.

“And the little ones?”

“It’s hard on them. Emma especially. Ria is optimistic that you’ll be home soon. She said that you had probably already apologized and therefore will be forgiven soon.” She averts her gaze because it’s hard to keep the tears from falling and to hold in the sobs. But the thought that they finally have a plan helps her not to break down in front of him. When she looks up at him again, she can see him struggling as well. For a second, she contemplates telling him about the baby, but she doesn’t want to increase the pressure on him even more. She can see how hard it is on him to hear how the children, who are by now, just as much his children as hers, are faring. She doesn’t want him to resort to desperate measures in order to speed up a conviction or reduce a sentence or whatever else the people always do on TV. She still hasn’t got any clue as to how exactly this whole getting arrested business works. And as Rio is getting out soon and going legit when he is back home, she has no intention of learning anything about it. So, she keeps her mouth shut in the hope that he will really be out before she starts showing or otherwise she will have to tell him anyway and hope that he will at least be there for the majority of her pregnancy.

“And how are you doing?” he asks.

“Better. I’m adjusting and hopeful,” she says but doesn’t dare say more about it, always thinking about what Aldrin told her.

“Good,” he states, “Are you thinking of me?”

“Always,” she answers truthfully and without hesitation, looking him straight into the eyes.

“Good. And at night, in bed?” his voice drops to a husky whisper, his eyes burning and his mouth pulled into a smirk that leaves her squirming in her seat. Still she snorts, smirking back at him.

“Are you asking me if I miss your cock?” she asks in a voice that she hopes is somewhere in the realms of sexy.

“Do you?”

“God, I miss your cock, your hands, your tongue, I miss everything about you,” she answers.

“What do you think about at night when you touch yourself?” he questions. She flushes more deeply now, uncomfortable to talk to him about touching herself in such a stinted place, when she hasn’t thought about sex since he was arrested.

“I don’t,” she states.

“Elizabeth,” he says sternly, “When you go to bed tonight, I want you to think about the last time we did it and then I want you to touch yourself. I want you to draw it out, keep yourself on the edge for a couple of minutes and when you’re about to come, I want you to put two fingers inside that sweet cunt of yours and imagine them to be mine. And when you come back next week I want you to tell me all about it.” She groans quietly, squirms in her seat, but doesn’t break eye contact.

“The time you picked me up in the bathroom and I rode you?” she asks.

“The time I made you another baby,” he whispers. She can feel the blood drain from her face, as her mouth fall open in astonishment and she takes in an audible breath.

“How do you know?” she wheezes.

“Your boobs, sweetheart,” he answers, “I know these boobs quite well and they have gotten huge. I knew the moment I laid eyes on you last week.” His eyes twinkle with mischief and he doesn’t seem angry with her. Still, “Are you angry at me for not telling you?” He shakes his head.

“I was afraid that you would try to make this easier on us by doing something rash,” she tries to justify her silence.

“Don’t worry. I know you have it all under control. I trust you,” he declares. She heaves a relieved breath.

“It’s going to be a boy,” she says, even though she doesn’t actually know the sex of the baby yet, but she knows well enough that Rio always gets his way, though it is beyond her how exactly he manages it.

“Of course, it is,” he answers smoothly.

“Why didn’t you say anything last week?” she demands, trying for an affronted look but knowing that she is failing miserably. Because all she can feel is relieved, that he knows and that she doesn’t have to keep anything from him anymore and also that he has taken the news calmly.

“I didn’t know if you knew. I mean, you can be pretty thick when it comes to realizing that you’re pregnant. And I didn’t want to upset you any further. You looked pretty rough.” He is, of course, referring to how she found about being pregnant with Ria, which she basically didn’t. It was only when Annie found her eating coleslaw that Annie had suspected and forced her to take a pregnancy test. And he isn’t wrong. Though she didn’t think her vomiting was due to a stomach bug, she thought it to be stress induced.

“Takes one to know one,” she answers and they both laugh, even though nothing about this situation is in any way funny. The guard calls out to them, to wrap it up, and at that moment there is only one thing left to say.

“I love you, Rio.”

“I love you, Elizabeth,” he answers and for the short moment it takes the guard to make his way to Rio they just look at each other with their hands pressed to the glass.

When she arrives home, the house is full again and she is thankful for the support that her family shows her. Still, she is glad when it is just her and the kids again a couple of hours later. It’s weird, when she is alone, she yearns for company and when there are people, she craves to be alone. It’s probably only normal, when the only thing she really wants is for her husband to be back at her side.

She doesn’t do what Rio has asked of her, though she thinks about it. It’s a task bound for disaster.

 

* * *

 

They meet up with Georgie Danes the next day.

She takes time dressing herself, again going for her best Stepfort Mum look, even taking out the pearls that she left at the door of the warehouse seven years ago. When she runs the string through her fingers, she reminisces about the night that Rio brought them back to her. How she had been scared of him, when he had never planned on hurting her. She knows that he had wanted to kiss her for a while by then. Actually, he had wanted to do much more than that because he had found her alluring from the very first time they met. He told her once how he had hoped to never see her again after their trip to Canada. For one, because Big Mike had really been quite angry about being shot in the foot, but also because starting something with her had not been something he had wanted at the time. He claimed that he had known from the very first day on that they would end up involved if they kept their business relations on. But he hadn’t been able to help himself, the offer that the pearls represented had been too tempting to stay away. Still, he hadn’t expected it to end well. She is glad that this isn’t the end of them and that his prediction will not hold true.

As she puts the pearl around her neck, she remembers how he put them on her that night, how he entangled one hand in her hair and tilted her head up, so that he had access to her mouth. How he growled _You must be so bored, mamma_ against her lips before he claimed her mouth with his own. How he lifted her up onto the kitchen island to ensure she wouldn’t fall over, because her knees had gone weak. Never has he been anything but gentle with her, well if you don’t count the odd gun to her head. She chuckles marveling at how insane the beginning of their relationship had been.

Carlos and Eddie are already waiting outside to take her to the meeting point. Beth has a fairly good understanding of Rio’s business by now but she still doesn’t feel confident enough to discuss the transfer of business with Georgie Danes. All the more shocked is she, when George insists that Carlos and Eddie stay outside with his own associates while the two of them share a meal and discuss what needs to be done.

They arrive at a small, nondescript Italian restaurant and upon entering are immediately searched none too gently for any kind of weaponry. Beth is searched by an ugly brute of a man with flat green eyes and acne scars on his face who takes a little too much pleasure in feeling her up. She is aware of the necessity of the search as it is the first time that she will be doing business with Georgie. Still.

“Get your filthy hands off me, if you like them attached to your arms,” she snaps and is surprised to hear someone laughing roaringly behind her. She turns to set her eyes on a handsome man probably in his mid-fifties. He is wearing an expensive-looking, grey three-piece suit that accents his well-toned body perfectly. When he steps towards Beth she notices to her satisfaction that he is about two inches shorter than her and the heels that she has chosen to wear today only underline her height advantage.

“Mr Danes, I assume,” she says politely taking a step towards him extending her hand in greeting. He takes her hand and with a small bow and places a soft kiss on her knuckles.

“Please, Mrs Medina call me Georgie,” he says smiling widely at her.

“Only if you’ll call me Beth in return,” she answers.

“I see the tales of your beauty are not an exaggeration,” he remarks with another slight bow, “And may I just offer my sincerest congratulations on your recent wedding.” She blushes a little and thanks him profusely.

“Well, Theo you better bring some distance between yourself and the lovely Misses, I hear she can cause quite some damage if only she gets her hands on the right tool,” he snaps at the man that still stands way too close to her and she is grateful, when the heat of his body disappears. Still, she doesn’t pay him any attention in an attempt to appear unruffled by him. She silently thanks Bob for holding true to his promise to talk her up to Georgie.

Georgie claps his hands twice. “Out now, all of you! Beth and I are going to have lunch and talk some business,” he commands and then turns to Beth, “You are in for a treat. This is the best Italian place in the city.” She shoots Carlos a glance, panicked that she will have to negotiate with Georgie on her own, but he gives her a barely visible nod, that tells her _You’ve got this, boss!_ She releases a breath and then addresses Eddie and Carlos, mimicking his commanding tone, “You’ve heard the man, please wait for me outside.” She chooses her words carefully, trying for politeness in her command to remind Georgie that he is talking to a lady here and that she expects to be treated as such.

The boys leave and they are now alone in the restaurant, except for a waiter that brings them the menus. They are silent while they choose their food and it is only when the waiter brings them their drinks, Beth opting for sparkling water, that Georgie speaks.

“So, how are you faring in this difficult situation?” he inquires. Beth has no desire to go into her personal life, but she doesn’t want to be impolite, so she answers anyway.

“I’m tougher than I look.”

“Don’t I know that,” he quips, chuckling to himself.

“Look, Mr Danes,” she begins, but is interrupted when he says, “Georgie, please.”

“Georgie,” she concedes with a small smile, “I don’t mean to be rude, but if it’s okay with you I’d rather not talk about my personal life.”

“Of course not,” he answers, “Let’s talk business then. I’m of the impression that you have got a proposition for me.”

“And a very lucrative one at that,” she confirms.

“I have no doubt about it.” The waiter appears then with their entrees and they fall silent for a moment, as both of them arrange their napkins on their laps and take a first few bites.

“You were right,” she voices, “The food is heavenly.” He shoots her an appreciative glance, but doesn’t comment any further.

“Well, I trust you know everything about my husband’s current predicament,” she begins.

“Of course, and let me tell you that I’m most upset that it occurred during a business meeting with my associates,” he apologizes. The situation is bizarre at best. She has a weird hankering to throw her head back and laugh out loud at the way they are discussing the situation, calling his henchmen associates and a drop-off a business meeting as if the lot of them weren’t criminals. But she reigns herself in and just throws Georgie a thankful smile.

“You probably won’t be surprised to hear that after his release he won’t be able to pursue his chosen career any further. This Agent Turner that has fabricated all these heinous accusations is quite keen on convicting him in any way he can.” He opts for an affronted look.

“Sometimes I feel like the methods applied by all these Agents and Officers and whatever they like to call themselves aren’t so different from those of the people they like to condemn,” he chips in and she shakes her head slightly.

“No, they’re not. I’m afraid my handling of the situation has done nothing to dissuade Mr Turner from his quest to go after my husband,” she replies sheepishly.

“It is the prerogative of a mother to protect her family. Surely Mr Turner should know this,” he offers sounding almost outraged.

“As a family man himself, you should think that,” she says and shrugs her shoulder lightly.

“So, are you offering me a share of your husband’s business?” he asks unable to reign his curiosity in any longer.

“You will find that it is not so much my husband’s business as a family business. You don’t have to worry about him not approving my plans, if that is what you’re worried about,” she puts in quickly in order to disperse any doubt before they turn up.

“No, I would not dream of questioning your word, Beth,” he says solemnly, but she can see from the way the tension leaves his shoulders that it has been right of her to bring that particular point across sooner rather than later.

“I offer you the lion’s share of the business,” she states and is met by an astonished look from Georgie. “My husband’s retreat will leave a vacuum behind that I would rather see filled by a gentleman such as yourself rather than some random thugs.” Flattery will get her everywhere with this man, she is sure of that.

“I see,” he replies, apparently lost for words.

“You will see that my husband’s and my business is located in several warehouses that are scattered across town. I will offer you to acquire some of them and the relevant equipment to take over his endeavor,” she announces.

“That’s a generous offer,” he replies, “And what do you want in return?”

“Thirty percent of your profits through one of your legitimate businesses and an in to one of Grant McKee’s associates,” she pronounces.

They keep talking business while their main courses arrive. She tells Georgie her plan, that he is supposed to take over some of the warehouses while others go to sale separately as to divert the attention from the redistribution of property. She advises to relocate the necessary equipment to another warehouse out of town in order to further shake the feds off their trails. She also provides him with a plan on how to clean the product through his legitimate businesses and through some of the businesses that Rio has worked with for years now, offering to make the introductions and vouch for him.

When desert arrives, Georgie tries to negotiate her price, but Beth merely says, “I’m sure you’ll find that my offer is more than generous and I’m, therefore, afraid that my price is not negotiable. I’m offering you a running business that brings a steady and not unremarkable income. If you’re disinclined to take the deal, I’ll be prepared to bring it up to some other interested taker. Though I’d be most disappointed to see the family business go to someone else but you.” She gives him an almost disappointed look and removes the napkin from her lap as if to get up, but he quickly reaches out for her hand and holds her there.

“No, Beth. I’m sorry. It is a generous offer that I would be glad to take. You can’t blame a business man like myself for trying to haggle a little,” he says hurriedly in order to pin her to her place.

“I’m glad you see it that way,” she answers and then both of them get up and shake hands. They do not talk any more about the details of their agreement. Carlos will have to handle the part where Georgie offers them an in to McKee.

She walks out of the restaurant, thanking Georgie profusely for the pleasant talk and superb food, before making her way towards the car, where she tells Carlos and Eddie every single detail of the conversation that she is able to remember.

Once home, she offers them both beers and they sit together in comfortable, yet jubilant silence for a while.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading and just as always I would be so glad to hear what you thought about the chapter.

**Author's Note:**

> Ever since Beth and Rio had their daughter, I had this specific scene in mind that inspired this whole story. It will probably take a couple of chapters until we're at said scene. I'm going to let you know when we're there.
> 
> I hope you enjoyed the first chapter and as always I'm curious to hear what you think about it.


End file.
